Delphinium
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Delphinium is a genus of about 300 species of annual and perennial flowering plants in the family Ranunculaceae, native throughout the Northern Hemisphere and also on the high mountains of tropical Africa. The genus was erected by Carl Linnaeus.<ref>Template:EFloras</ref>
All members of the genus Delphinium are toxic to humans and livestock.<ref name=SNW>Template:Cite book</ref> The common name larkspur is shared between perennial Delphinium species and annual species of the genus Consolida.<ref name="Dorling Kindersley">Template:Cite book</ref> Molecular data show that Consolida, as well as another segregate genus, Aconitella, are both embedded in Delphinium.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
The genus name Delphinium derives from the Ancient Greek word Template:Wikt-lang (Template:Grc-transl) which means "dolphin", a name used in De Materia Medica for some kind of larkspur.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Pedanius Dioscorides said the plant got its name because of its dolphin-shaped flowers.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
Habitat
Species with short stems and few flowers such as Delphinium nuttallianum and Delphinium bicolor appear in habitats like prairies and the sagebrush steppe. Tall and robust species with many flowers, such as Delphinium occidentale, appear more often in forests.<ref name=":1" />
Description
The leaves are deeply lobed with three to seven toothed, pointed lobes in a palmate shape. The main flowering stem is erect, and varies greatly in size between the species, from 10 centimetres in some alpine species, up to 2 m tall in the larger meadowland species.Template:Cn
In June and July (Northern Hemisphere), the plant is topped with a raceme of many flowers, varying in colour from purple and blue, to red, yellow, or white. The flowers are bilaterally symmetrical and have many stamens.<ref name=":1">Template:Cite book</ref> In most species, each flower consists of five petal-like sepals which grow together to form a hollow pocket with a spur at the end, which gives the plant its name, usually more or less dark blue. Within the sepals are four true petals, small, inconspicuous, and commonly coloured similarly to the sepals. The uppermost sepal is spurred, and encloses the nectar-secreting spurs of the two upper petals.<ref name= "Jepson"/>
The seeds are small and often shiny black. The plants flower from late spring to late summer, and are pollinated by butterflies and bumble bees. Despite the toxicity, Delphinium species are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species, including the dot moth and small angle shades.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Taxonomy
Delineation of Delphinium
Genetic analysis suggests that Delphinium sensu lato, as it was delineated before the 21st century, is polyphyletic. Nested within Delphinium s.l. are Aconitella, Consolida, and Aconitum. To make Delphinium monophyletic, several interventions were made. The new genus Staphisagria was erected containing Staphisagria macrosperma (D. staphisagria), S. requienii (D. requini) and S. picta (D. pictum), representing the sister group to all other Delphinieae.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref name="Jabbour&Renner">Template:Cite journal</ref> Further genetic analysis has shown that the two large subgenera Aconitum (Aconitum) and Aconitum (Lycoctonum) are the sister group to Aconitum gymnandrum, Delphinium (Delphinium), Delphinium (Delphinastrum), Consolida and Aconitella. To make Aconitum monophyletic, A. gymnandrum has now been reassigned to a new monotypic genus, Gymnaconitum. Finally, Consolida and Aconitella are synonymized with Delphinium.<ref name="WLYGC">Template:Cite journal</ref><ref name=":0">Template:Cite journal</ref>
Subgenera
D. arthriscifolium is sister to all other species of Delphinium sensu stricto (so excluding Staphisagria). It should be placed in its own subgenus, but no proposal naming this subgenus has been made yet.Template:Citation needed The subgenera Delphinium (Delphinium) and Delphinium (Delphinastrum) are sister to the group consisting of the species of Consolida and Aconitella, which together make up the subgenus Delphinium (Consolida). Aconitella cannot be retained as a subgenus because A. barbata does not cluster with the remaining species previously assigned to that genus, without creating five further subgenera.
Selected species
Species include: Template:Div col
- Delphinium andersonii
- Delphinium arthriscifolium
- Delphinium bakeri
- Delphinium barbeyi
- Delphinium bicolor
- Delphinium brunonianum
- Delphinium californicum
- Delphinium calthifolium
- Delphinium cardinale
- Delphinium carolinianum
- Delphinium cheilanthum
- Delphinium consolida
- Delphinium decorum
- Delphinium denudatum
- Delphinium depauperatum
- Delphinium elatum
- Delphinium exaltatum
- Delphinium formosum
- Delphinium glaucum
- Delphinium gracilentum
- Delphinium grandiflorum
- Delphinium gypsophilum
- Delphinium hansenii
- Delphinium hesperium
- Delphinium hutchinsoniae
- Delphinium hybridum
- Delphinium inopinum
- Delphinium ithaburense
- Delphinium leucophaeum
- Delphinium luteum
- Delphinium malabaricum
- Delphinium nudicaule
- Delphinium nuttallianum
- Delphinium occidentale
- Delphinium parishii
- Delphinium parryi
- Delphinium patens
- Delphinium pavonaceum
- Delphinium peregrinum
- Delphinium polycladon
- Delphinium purpusii
- Delphinium recurvatum
- Delphinium robustum
- Delphinium scopulorum
- Delphinium stachydeum
- Delphinium tricorne
- Delphinium trolliifolium
- Delphinium uliginosum
- Delphinium umbraculorum
- Delphinium variegatum
- Delphinium viridescens
Reassigned species
Several species of Delphinium have been reassigned:<ref name=":0" />
- D. pictum = Staphisagria picta
- D. requienii = Staphisagria requienii
- D. staphisagria = Staphisagria macrosperma
Ecology
Delphiniums can attract butterflies and other pollinators.<ref name="mbot">Template:Cite web</ref>
Cultivation
Various delphiniums are cultivated as ornamental plants, for traditional and native plant gardens. The numerous hybrids and cultivars are primarily used as garden plants, providing height at the back of the summer border, in association with roses, lilies, and geraniums.Template:Cn
Most delphinium hybrids and cultivars are derived from D. elatum. Hybridisation was developed in the 19th century, led by Victor Lemoine in France.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Other hybrid crosses have included D. bruninianum, D. cardinale, D. cheilanthum, and D. formosum.<ref name="dowd">Template:Cite web</ref>
Numerous cultivars have been selected as garden plants, and for cut flowers and floristry. They are available in shades of white, pink, purple, and blue. The blooming plant is also used in displays and specialist competitions at flower and garden shows, such as the Chelsea Flower Show.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
The 'Pacific Giant' hybrids are a group with individual single-colour cultivar names, developed by Reinelt in the United States. They typically grow to Template:Convert tall on long stems, by Template:Convert wide. They reportedly can tolerate deer.<ref name="mbot"/> Millennium delphinium hybrids, bred by Dowdeswell's in New Zealand, are reportedly better in warmer climates than the Pacific hybrids.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Flower colours in shades of red, orange, and pink have been hybridized from D. cardinale by Americans Reinelt and Samuelson.<ref name="dowd"/>
Since 2024 the UK National Collection of delphiniums has been held by Colin Parton at Delph Cottage Garden, south east of Leeds. Parton has over 100 cultivars, 21 of which are on the endangered list on Plant Heritage's Threatened Plants Programme. He occasionally opens his garden to the public in return for a donation to the charity Cancer Research.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Award of garden merit
The following delphinium cultivars have received the Award of Garden Merit from the British Royal Horticultural Society:<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
| Name | Height (m) | Flower colour | Eye colour | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 'Atholl' | 1.5 | white | brown | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 'Blue Dawn' | 2.2 | mauve (pale) | brown | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 'Blue Nile' | 1.5 | blue (mid) | white | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 'Bruce' | 2.0 | violet (deep) | buff | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 'Can-can' | 1.5 | violet (pale) | (double) | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 'Centurion Sky Blue' | 1.5 | blue (light) | white | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 'Cherub' | 1.5 | mauve (pale) | cream | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 'Clifford Sky' | 2.0 | blue (sky) | white | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 'Conspicuous' | 1.5 | mauve | brown | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 'Elisabeth Sahin' | 1.5 | white | cream | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 'Elizabeth Cook' | 1.5 | white | white | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 'Emily Hawkins' | 1.5 | lilac | brown | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 'Faust' | 1.8 | blue (deep) | black | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 'Fenella' | 1.5 | blue (dark) | black | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 'Foxhill Nina' | 1.5 | pink (pale) | white | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 'Galileo' | 1.8 | blue (mid) | black | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 'Holly Cookland Wilkins' | 2.5 | violet | brown | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 'Jill Curley' | 2.1 | white | cream | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 'Kennington Classic' | 2.5 | white | yellow | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 'Kestrel' | 2.0 | blue (bright) | brown | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 'Langdon's Blue Lagoon' | 1.9 | blue (mid) | white | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 'Langdon's Pandora' | 2.5 | blue (sky) | brown | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 'Lilian Bassett' | 1.5 | white | brown | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 'Lord Butler' | 1.5 | blue (light) | white | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 'Lucia Sahin' | 2.0 | pink/purple | brown | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 'Margaret' | 1.5 | blue (bright) | white | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 'Michael Ayres' | 1.5 | violet (deep) | brown | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 'Min' | 2.0 | violet | brown | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 'Olive Poppleton' | 2.5 | white | yellow | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 'Oliver' | 1.5 | blue (light) | black | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 'Our Deb' | 1.5 | pink (pale) | brown | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 'Purple Velvet' | 1.5 | violet | brown/yellow | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 'Raymond Lister' | 1.7 | blue (mid) | brown | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 'Rosemary Brock' | 1.5 | pink | brown | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 'Rosy Future' | 1.2 | pink | white/black | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 'Spindrift' | 1.5 | lilac (pale) | white | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 'Sungleam' | 2.0 | cream | yellow | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 'Sunkissed' | 1.5 | white | yellow | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 'Sweethearts' | 2.5 | pink (rose) | white | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 'Tiddles' | 1.5 | mauve | (double) | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 'Walton Gemstone' | 2.0 | violet (pale) | white | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
Toxicity
All parts of these plants are considered toxic to humans, especially the younger parts,<ref name="SNW"/> causing severe digestive discomfort if ingested, and skin irritation.<ref name="SNW"/><ref name="Dorling Kindersley"/><ref name= "Jepson">Template:Jepson Manual</ref><ref name = Olsen>Template:Cite journal</ref> Larkspur, especially tall larkspur, is a significant cause of cattle poisoning on rangelands in the western United States.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Larkspur is more common in high-elevation areas, and many ranchers delay moving cattle onto such ranges until late summer when the toxicity of the plants is reduced.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Death is through cardiotoxic and neuromuscular blocking effects, and can occur within a few hours of ingestion.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> All parts of the plant contain various diterpenoid alkaloids, typified by methyllycaconitine, and are very poisonous.<ref name = Olsen/>
Uses
The juice of the flowers, particularly D. consolida, mixed with alum, gives a blue ink.<ref name=fig>Template:Cite book</ref>
All plant parts are poisonous in large doses, especially the seeds, that contain up to 1.4% of alkaloids.Template:Cn
References
External links
Template:Commons category Template:Wikispecies
- General Nomenclature in GRIN: GRIN: Species in the genus Delphinium — with links by species for information + synonyms.
- USDA-ARS: Larkspur—Delphinium spp. Fact Sheet — native U.S. species and grazing toxicity.
- MBG—Kemper Center for Home Gardening: Delphinium "Pacific Giant Hybrids" — horticultural information.
- Dowdeswell's Ltd: "Growing New Millennium Delphiniums in the U.S. & Canada" — horticultural information.