Ranunculus asiaticus

Ranunculus asiaticus Wild type in its natural habitat

The Asian buttercup (Ranunculus asiaticus ), whose garden forms are also called Florist Ranunculus, Riesenranunkel or Topfranunkel, is a species of the genus Ranunculus (Ranunculus ) in the family of the buttercup family ( Ranunculaceae ). It is used as an ornamental plant in parks and gardens as well as a cut flower.

Description

The Asian buttercup grows as a perennial herbaceous plant that reaches heights of growth of up to 30 centimeters. This Geophyt forms storage roots as outlasting and rhizomes. The stem is branched only sparsely. The change-constant leaves are shaped differently: The basal leaves are often undivided, but most leaves are divided, the higher up in the stem narrower so. The leaf margin is serrated to cut.

The flowering time is in the spring. The hermaphrodite flowers are radial symmetry. There are five to seven brightly colored bracts present. The flower colors range from white to cream to yellow, orange to salmon colored by carmine red and pink to purple; they can be monochromatic or multicolored. The many stamens are blackish - purple, mahogany- brown or light - tan. The seed heads are cylindrical.

The species is diploid, their chromosome number is 2n = 16

The numerous varieties differ in many characteristics greatly from the wild form from, particularly through the " double flowers ".

Systematics and distribution

Ranunculus asiaticus was first published in 1753 by Carl Linnaeus in Species Plantarum, 1, p 552. Ranunculus asiaticus L. A synonym for is Cyprianthe asiatica (L.) Freyn.

The distribution area is the eastern Mediterranean: Egypt, northern Libya, Cyprus, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Turkey and Crete.