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Kniphofia

Kniphofia (, , ) is a genus of perennial flowering plants in the family Asphodelaceae, first described as a genus in 1794. All species of Kniphofia are native to Africa. Common names include tritoma, red hot poker, torch lily and poker plant.

Description

The genus has herbaceous and evergreen species. The herbaceous species and hybrids have narrow, grass-like leaves long, while evergreen species have broader, strap-shaped foliage up to long. All plants produce spikes of upright, brightly coloured flowers well above the foliage, in shades of red, orange and yellow, often bicoloured. The flowers produce copious nectar while blooming and are attractive to bees and nectar-feeding birds such as sugarbirds and sunbirds. The Ethiopian wolf (Canis simensis) has been observed to feed on the nectar produced by Kniphofia foliosa; they are thought to be the only macropredator known to potentially act as a pollinator. In the New World, they may attract nectarivores such as hummingbirds and New World orioles.

Taxonomy

The genus Kniphofia was first erected by Conrad Moench in 1794. Moench considered the species he was describing (now Kniphofia uvaria) sufficiently different from Carl Linnaeus's genus Aletris and from Veltheimia to warrant a new genus. The name honours Johann Hieronymus Kniphof, an 18th-century German physician and botanist.

Species

, Plants of the World Online accepted 73 species, including two hybrids.

Cultivation

Several species of Kniphofia are cultivated as garden plants, valued for their architectural properties. These include K. galpini, K. northiae, K. rooperi and K. thomsonii.

In addition to the species, many named cultivars of mixed or uncertain parentage have been selected for garden use. The following have gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit:-

  • 'Barton Fever' (orange-white, 100 cm)
  • 'Bees' Sunset' (yellow, 90 cm)
  • 'Brimstone' (sulphur yellow, 90 cm)
  • 'Buttercup' (clear yellow, 75 cm)
  • 'Coral Flame' (coral red, 90 cm)
  • 'Fiery Fred' (orange, 130 cm)
  • 'Incandesce' (orange, 140 cm)
  • 'Innocence' (red-yellow, 110 cm)
  • 'Jonathan' (red-orange, 130 cm)
  • 'Moonstone' (yellow, 120 cm)
  • 'Nobilis' (evergreen, orange and yellow, 150 cm+)
  • 'Penny Rockets' (orange, 100 cm)
  • 'Primrose Upward' (yellow, 115 cm)
  • 'Rich Echoes' (orange-yellow, 120 cm)
  • 'Royal Standard' (red and yellow, 90 cm)
  • 'Safranvogel' (peach pink, 80 cm)
  • 'Samuel's Sensation' (red-yellow, 150 cm)
  • 'Sunningdale Yellow' (orange and yellow, 60 cm)
  • 'Tawny King' (cream/brown, 120 cm)
  • 'Timothy' (orange, 100 cm)
  • 'Toffee Nosed' (cream/brown, 100 cm)
  • 'Wrexham Buttercup' (yellow, 120 cm)

Gallery

See also

References

External links