Dicentra

Far Eastern heart flower ( Dicentra peregrina )

The heart flowers ( Dicentra ) are a genus of flowering plants in the subfamily Fumitory ( Fumarioideae ). The genus takes its name from the characteristic flower shape. Many species are widely used as ornamental plants.

Description

Heart flowers are annual or perennial herbaceous plants. The shoot axis is upright and when present is simple or branched. For mature plants it is hollow. Sometimes the stem axis is missing completely and there is only basal leaves, the inflorescence is then on a leafless stem. The chromosome number is n = 8

The roots are taproots. Many species produce tubers, bulbs or rhizomes as outlasting

The leaves are basal or sit on the stem. They are composed. The lamina consists of two to four orders of pinnae or lobes. The leaf margins are entire, notched or serrated. The leaf surface is bare and sometimes gray-green, frosted.

The inflorescences can axillary, the leaves are opposite or terminal. You are flowered or many flowered and thyrsoid, rispenartig or schirmrispig. The flowers are axially symmetric about two perpendicular planes of symmetry. The sepals fall off at an early stage of anthesis.

The crown is heart-shaped and extends in silhouette. The petals are joined or fused only at the base. You are not porous. The outer petals are spurred both swollen or basal. The tips are keeled in almost all species. The interiors are curved, spoon - or arrow-shaped, pointed their basal ends are linear or lanceolate.

The stamens are in bundles or circles. The respective average filament carries this nectar -forming tissue, it is often bent and pointing at the swollen base of the opposite outer Kronblatts. The ovary is broadly ovate or obovate to narrowly cylindrical. The scar is persistent me two flaps or horns, rarely with two lateral papillae.

The fruit capsules are tearing up or not tearing up with 2 Valven. They are much or wenigsamig. Elaiosome are usually present.

Dissemination

The genus is of course native to the temperate zone of North America and East Asia. Due to the spread of many species as ornamentals are many neophyte occurrence, especially in Europe.

System

The genus of heart flowers include 12 species. It is difficult to distinguish from the closely related genus Dactylicapnos, and many species were spun only in recent years ( after 2000) from Dicentra and placed in the genus Dactylicapnos. As early as 1997 the Watery Heart ( Lamprocapnos spectabilis ) was spun off as a separate genus. The types of the new species Ehrendorferia, E. chrysantha and E. Fukuhara ochroleuca were previously to the genus Dicentra. The other species of the genus are:

• Canadian heart flower ( Dicentra canadensis ( Goldie ) Walp. ); Home: Canada, USA
• Yellow gold heart flower ( Dicentra chrysantha ( Hook. & Arn ) Walp. . ), Now also Ehrendorferia chrysantha expected Rylander, home ( Hook. & Arn. ): Southern Oregon, California
• Hooded heart flower ( Dicentra cucullaria (L.) Bernh. ), Origin: Canada and USA
• Dwarf - heart flower ( Dicentra eximia ( Ker Gawl ) Torr.. ), Origin: United States (from Georgia to New York) is naturalized in Scotland before
• American Heart flower or Pacific heart flower ( Dicentra formosa ( Haw. ) Walp. ), Origin: Western North America comes naturalized also in Europe (UK, Denmark, The Netherlands)
• Large-flowered heart flower (. Dicentra macrantha Olive, is also put in the genus Ichtyoselmis than I. macrantha ( Oliv. ) Lidén ), Origin: China, North Myanmar, comes in wet meadows and forests at altitudes 1500-2700 meters before
• Dicentra nevadensis Eastw, home. CA
• Dicentra ochroleuca Engelm, now also asked to Ehrendorferia ochroleuca ( Engelm. ) Fukuhara, home. CA
• Dicentra pauciflora S. Watson, Origin: California
• Far Eastern heart flower ( Dicentra peregrina ( Rudolph) Makino ), Origin: Amur, Sakhalin, Japan, Kamchatka, Chukotka
• Dicentra uniflora Kellogg, Origin: Western North America
• Dicentra VENTII Khánh, Origin: India

Etymology

The botanical name is derived from the Greek word δικεντρόω, dikentros ( = zweispornig ) after the two outer, spurred sepals.

Use

Almost all species of the genus are popular as ornamental plants.

Most Fumitory ( Fumarioideae ) contain large amounts of isoquinolines. At the heart flowers, there are over 35 different compounds of this group of substances. Some species have been used medicinally for this reason. From the bulbs of the Canadian heart flower ( Dicentra canadensis ) and the Hooded heart flower ( Dicentra cucullaria ) were prepared as in the past ointments for various skin diseases.

Cattle seem to avoid heart flowers and eats them only if no other food is available.

Swell

• Kingsley R. Stern: Dicentra. In: Flora of North America. 3, Oxford University Press, New York 1997, ISBN 978-0-19-511246-7 (online, accessed on 24 November 2008).
• Template: Internet resource / maintenance / access date is not in the ISO FormatDicentra. In: Tropico. Missouri Botanical Garden, accessed on 24 November 2008.
• Walter Erhardt et al: The big walleye. Encyclopedia of plant names. Volume 2 Eugen Ulmer Verlag, Stuttgart, 2008. ISBN 978-3-8001-5406-7
• Eckhart J. Hunter, Friedrich Ebel, Peter Hanelt, Gerd K. Müller: Excursion Flora of Germany. Volume 5 Herbaceous ornamental and useful plants. Oxford University Press. Berlin, Heidelberg, 2008. ISBN 978-3-8274-0918-8