Fritillaria amana
We
first grew Fritillaria amana under its older name of F. hermonis subsp.
amana
about twenty years ago when we acquired stock of the clone EKB 1034
from a very generous friend, David Foreman. Soon afterwards,
we
obtained stock of the yellow form from Norman Stevens. At
this
point we became hooked and since it coincided with various visits to
Turkey, we kept a look out for the species whenever we were in the
Amanus mountains or indeed further south in Syria. It is
widespread here but not common. It often contracts into a
vegetative state where the only evidence of its presence is a lawn of
small basal leaves with no flowers. We suspect that this may
be
the result of adverse conditions such as drought or grazing.
It
is a plant that seems to grow only where there is some shade and leaf
mould from deciduous oak trees. These are mainly Quercus ceris,
the Turkey Oak, and the fritillary seems quite happy even when the oaks
have been coppiced and the shade drastically reduced for a year or
two. This year, 2008, we did find some plants growing in less
tree shade but they were right under cliffs and large rock outcrops
which would provide shade for part of the day.
Having
grown a lot of plants from numerous introductions under the old name
(i.e. F. hermonis
subsp. amana)
it became clear to us that we were dealing with two very different
plants and two or three trips later and after a lot of measuring, we
eventually concluded that there were two quite distinct taxa under this
name. The southern ones from around the Bekaa Valley of
Lebanon
are now placed under F.
hermonis and the northern ones under F. amana.
The distribution of the two species does not overlap, there being at
least a 50 km gap between the southern outliers of F. amana in central
Jebl Nusairia and the northern colonies of F. hermonis on
Mount Lebanon.
F. amana
is characterised by the fact that the basal leaves (i.e. those which
arise from ground level) are always bright shining green although the
stem leaves can sometimes be glaucescent (both are strongly glaucous in
F.
hermonis). The nectary is always either circular
or oval (ovate-lanceolate i.e. shield-shaped with a pointed tip in F. hermonis) and
small so that the axial ratio of nectary to tepal is 0.06 –
013 (015 – 0.36 in F.
hermonis). F.
amana is a plant of medium altitude and usually grows in
deciduous shade (high altitude and in open, north-facing limestone
scree in F. hermonis).
Most
years it seems easy to grow in an unheated greenhouse but sometimes it
goes backwards for unknown reasons. The larger bulbs seem to
die
off leaving the spawn just like we have observed in the wild.
It
is a plant of warm shade and may object to being too hot or in too much
sun. It also seems very susceptible to the Pythium fungus
which
is associated with, and may be the cause of, the so-called
“keeling over disease” where the routes are killed
at
around flowering stage.
DESCRIPTION
Fritillaria amana
(Rix) Wallis & Wallis, The Plantsman 1(2): 114 (2002).
syn.
F.
hermonis subsp
amana Rix, Kew Bull. 29: 647 (1975, published 1974).
Type:
Turkey, Marars, Zeytun, Kuru Dağ, limestone screes and turf, 5500 ft
[1700 m] 10 May 1934 Balls 1034 (E holotype; BM, K, isotypes).
Bulb
c. 2 cm usually with bulblets. Stem 8 - 25 cm;
smooth.
Leaves 4 - 6 all alternate, lanceolate, lowest 5. 0 - 8.2 x 1.3 - 2.2
cm, bright shining green occasionally slightly glaucous.
Leaves
on unflowered bulbs bright shining green. Flowers 1
(- 2),
nodding, broadly campanulate, yellow, green or brownish red, usually
marked with brownish red on the outer edges of the limb; perianth
segments 2.6 - 4.3 cm long, the outer 0.9 - 1.2 cm wide, the inner 1.2
- 1.7 cm wide. Nectaries indistinct, circular, rarely ovate
0.2 -
0.35 cm diameter 5 - 7 mm from base of segment. Ratio of
nectary
length to tepal length 0.06 - 0.13. Filaments papillose 0.9 -
1.2
cm, Anthers 0.6 - 1.4 cm, Style 0.9 - 1.3 cm usually smooth, trifid for
approx. one third its length. Capsule ovoid.
Deciduous
oak scrub usually on limestone, 1000 - 1700 m. Turkey:
Anti-Taurus mountains, Amanus Mountains, in Vilyets of Mara, Adana and
Hatay. Syria: Jebl Nusairia
©2008 Rannveig Wallis
&
Robert B Wallis
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