Star of Bethlehem - Ornithogalum arabicum
I haven’t done a Tiny Tuesday before so now is the time to get with it. This is just with my regular lens which does very nice closeups. It’s called Ornithogalum and it is a genus of perennial plants mostly native to southern Europe and southern Africa belonging to the family Asparagaceae.
There are some species native to other areas such as the Caucasus. Growing from a bulb, species have linear basal leaves and a slender stalk, up to 30 cm or more tall, bearing clusters of typically white star-shaped flowers, often striped with green.
The common name of the genus, is Star-of-Bethlehem, based on its star-shaped flowers, after the Star of Bethlehem. The number of species has varied considerably, depending on authority, anywhere from 50 to 300.
Ornithogalum arabicum is a species of star of Bethlehem native to northern Africa and southern Europe. Common names include Arab's eye, lesser cape-lily and Arabian starflower.
Some species of Ornithogalum are prescribed weeds and have started to invade the Belair National Park – no doubt dumped there by some thoughtless individual getting rid of garden waste!
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