Scilla

Scilla is a large genus in the Hyacinthaceae family (or most recently in the subfamily Scilloideae under the umbrella of the Asparagaceae) with most species found in Europe, North Africa and western to central Africa. There are also species from tropical Africa, India, and South Africa. Some are winter growing and some are summer growing. Some prefer part shade that doesn't dry out in summer and others prefer sun with summer dry. Scilla was the topic of the week in December 2003. We were provided with an excellent Introduction by Jerry Flintoff.

All species grow from true bulbs that are either submerged under the soil or project above the surface. (See the Geophyte page). The flowers are usually blue (sometimes white or pink) with six anthers. Scilla sensu stricto has round filaments, anthers that are somewhat perpendicular to the filaments, usually blue pollen, and petals are distinct and independent to each other. Scilla sensu lato includes Chionodoxa, but as a separate clade or section: Scilla sect. Chionodoxa. The section (sometimes included as part of the "Scilla bifolia group") has different floral morphology than Scilla sensu stricto, but has been confirmed by molecular analysis as well as the ability for species of Scilla and Chionodoxa to hybridize.

It was proposed by a number of taxonomists to break this genus into many smaller genera, some with only a few species. For more information about the proposed changes consult Julian Slade's post. Many years later some of these changes, but not all, have been accepted.

The classification of the species of Scilla is difficult and variable, as there are many different things botanists and taxonomists have looked at to separate the genus into different clades or even into new genera. Older methods relied on floral morphology alone and resulted in many species being included in the genus. In the last fifty years the genus has repeatedly been restructured based on seed and seedling morphology, bulb characteristics, and most recently by genetic markers found in molecular studies or depictive protein crystals found in the bulbs.

Many members of the Hyacinthaceae (aka Scilloideae) were at one time included in the genus Scilla. Many taxa have been moved into different or new genera, or proposed genera such as (but not limited to):
Autonoe, Barnardia, Chouardia, Fessia, Hyacinthoides, Merwilla, Nectaroscilla, Oncostema, Othocallis, Pfosseria, Prospero, Pseudoprospero, Schizocarphus, Schnarfia, Spetaea, Tractema, Zagrosia

The genus Chionodoxa is now widely considered to be included in Scilla, sometimes as a part of the Scilla bifolia group or as Scilla sect. Chionodoxa. Here is a simple Dichotomous key to help in differentiation between Chionodoxa, Puschkinia, and Scilla sensu stricto (Scilla in the strict sence).

xChionoscilla is a wiki page for hybrids between the genus Scilla and the genus Chionodoxa.

For more photos and information about the species click on the name in the table below or find them in the species pages: Scilla a-l - Scilla m-z. You can scroll through the photos by first holding down the Ctrl key and clicking on a photo and then using the arrows found close to the top of the photo on either side to move from one photo to another.


Species of Scilla sensu lato
Scilla albinerve, Hasan Yildirim [Shift+click to enlarge, Click to go to wiki entry]
Scilla albinerve
Scilla arsusiana, Hasan Yildirim [Shift+click to enlarge, Click to go to wiki entry]
Scilla arsusiana
Prospero autumnale, two forms, Michael Neumann [Shift+click to enlarge, Click to go to wiki entry]
Scilla autumnalis (Prospero)
Scilla bifolia, 19th April 2014, Rimmer de Vries [Shift+click to enlarge, Click to go to wiki entry]
Scilla bifolia
Scilla cilicica, Oron Peri [Shift+click to enlarge, Click to go to wiki entry]
Scilla cilicica
Scilla cretica, John Lonsdale [Shift+click to enlarge, Click to go to wiki entry]
Scilla cretica
Scilla cupani, Angelo Porcelli [Shift+click to enlarge, Click to go to wiki entry]
Scilla cupani
Scilla dimartinoi, closeup, Angelo Porcelli [Shift+click to enlarge, Click to go to wiki entry]
Scilla dimartinoi
Merwilla dracomontana, Peter Warren, iNaturalist, CC0 [Shift+click to enlarge, Click to go to wiki entry]
Scilla dracomontana (Merwilla)
Fessia greilhuberi, John Lonsdale [Shift+click to enlarge, Click to go to wiki entry]
Scilla greilhuberi (Fessia)
Scilla forbesii, syn. Chionodoxa forbesii, David Pilling [Shift+click to enlarge, Click to go to wiki entry]
Scilla forbesii
Scilla haemorrhoidalis, Oron Peri [Shift+click to enlarge, Click to go to wiki entry]
Scilla haemorrhoidalis
Fessia hohenackeri, John Lonsdale [Shift+click to enlarge, Click to go to wiki entry]
Scilla hohenackeri (Fessia)
Scilla hughii, Susan Hayek [Shift+click to enlarge, Click to go to wiki entry]
Scilla hughii
Scilla hyacinthoides, Nhu Nguyen [Shift+click to enlarge, Click to go to wiki entry]
Scilla hyacinthoides
Scilla ingridiae, Hans Joschko [Shift+click to enlarge, Click to go to wiki entry]
Scilla ingridiae
Barnardia japonica, John Lonsdale [Shift+click to enlarge, Click to go to wiki entry]
Scilla japonica (Barnardia)
Scilla libanotica, Oron Peri [Shift+click to enlarge, Click to go to wiki entry]
Scilla libanotica
Scilla lilio-hyacinthus, Martin Bohnet [Shift+click to enlarge, Click to go to wiki entry]
Scilla lilio-hyacinthus
Hyacinthoides lingulata, Jane McGary [Shift+click to enlarge, Click to go to wiki entry]
Scilla lingulata (Hyacinthoides)
Scilla litardierei, Mary Sue Ittner [Shift+click to enlarge, Click to go to wiki entry]
Scilla litardierei
Scilla luciliae syn. Chionodoxa luciliae, John Lonsdale [Shift+click to enlarge, Click to go to wiki entry]
Scilla luciliae
Scilla madeirensis, Kew Gardens, Terry Laskiewicz [Shift+click to enlarge, Click to go to wiki entry]
Scilla madeirensis
Hyacinthoides mauritanica, Mary Sue Ittner [Shift+click to enlarge, Click to go to wiki entry]
Scilla mauritanica (Hyacinthoides)
Scilla melaina, Dave Brastow [Shift+click to enlarge, Click to go to wiki entry]
Scilla melaina
Scilla messeniaca, John Lonsdale [Shift+click to enlarge, Click to go to wiki entry]
Scilla messeniaca
Scilla mischtschenkoana, loesvm, iNaturalist, CC BY-NC [Shift+click to enlarge, Click to go to wiki entry]
Scilla mischtschenkoana
Scilla monanthos, Martin Bohnet [Shift+click to enlarge, Click to go to wiki entry]
Scilla monanthos
Scilla monophyllos, Mary Sue Ittner [Shift+click to enlarge, Click to go to wiki entry]
Scilla monophyllos
Scilla morrisii, Oron Peri [Shift+click to enlarge, Click to go to wiki entry]
Scilla morrisii
Merwilla plumbea, UC Botanical Garden, Kelley Macdonald [Shift+click to enlarge, Click to go to wiki entry]
Scilla natalensis (Merwilla)
Schizocarphus nervosus, Gaika's Kop, Mary Sue Ittner [Shift+click to enlarge, Click to go to wiki entry]
Scilla nervosa (Schizocarphus)
Prospero obtusifolium, Gottfried Milkuhn [Shift+click to enlarge, Click to go to wiki entry]
Scilla obtusifolia (Prospero)
Scilla peruviana, Mary Sue Ittner [Shift+click to enlarge, Click to go to wiki entry]
Scilla peruviana
Fessia puschkinioides, John Lonsdale [Shift+click to enlarge, Click to go to wiki entry]
Scilla puschkinioides (Fessia)
Scilla ramburei, Mary Sue Ittner [Shift+click to enlarge, Click to go to wiki entry]
Scilla ramburei
*
Scilla rosenii, Oron Peri [Shift+click to enlarge, Click to go to wiki entry]
Scilla rosenii
Barnardia japonica from seed labeled Scilla scilloides, Mary Sue Ittner [Shift+click to enlarge, Click to go to wiki entry]
Scilla scilloides (Barnardia)
*‡
Scilla sardensis, syn. ×Chionodoxa sardensis, Arnold Trachtenberg [Shift+click to enlarge, Click to go to wiki entry]
Scilla sardensis
Scilla siberica, Jay Yourch [Shift+click to enlarge, Click to go to wiki entry]
Scilla siberica
Scilla sicula, Angelo Porcelli [Shift+click to enlarge, Click to go to wiki entry]
Scilla sicula
*
Scilla vardaria syn. Chionodoxa vardaria, Hasan Yildirim [Shift+click to enlarge, Click to go to wiki entry]
Scilla vardaria
Scilla verna, Bob Rutemoeller [Shift+click to enlarge, Click to go to wiki entry]
Scilla verna
Scilla in the broad sense. Due to some differing points of view and a relative state of confusion, this table includes some synonyms of species once included in Scilla.
‡Species with this mark have been moved to new genera. The links go to the new genera.
* = synonym

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