Aquilegia viridiflora, commonly known as the green columbine[2] or green-flowered columbine,[3] is a perennial flowering plant in the family Ranunculaceae, native to southern Siberia, northern China, Mongolia, and Japan.[1]
| Aquilegia viridiflora | |
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| Aquilegia viridiflora in flower in Henfield, UK | |
Scientific classification 
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| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Order: | Ranunculales |
| Family: | Ranunculaceae |
| Genus: | Aquilegia |
| Species: | A. viridiflora
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| Binomial name | |
| Aquilegia viridiflora | |
| Synonyms[1] | |
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List
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Description
editAquilegia viridiflora is a herbaceous perennial[4] growing to 15 to 50 cm (5.9 to 19.7 in) tall, with hairy or glandular stems which often branch towards the top. It has few basal leaves, which are biternate and mostly smooth with stalks of up to 18 cm (7.1 in). It produces 3–7 nodding flowers measuring 1.5–2 cm (0.6–0.8 in) across which are either yellowish-green (in the variety viridiflora) or dark purple (atropurpurea). The sepals and petals measure 1.5 cm (0.6 in) or less and the petals have straight or slightly incurved nectar spurs of 1.2 to 1.8 cm (0.5 to 0.7 in) length.[5]
Taxonomy
editThere are two named varieties, distinguished by the colour of the flowers:[5]
- A. viridiflora var. atropurpurea (Willd.) Finet & Gagnep.[6] which is native to Mongolia, Siberia, and Hebei, southern Liaoning, Nei Mongol, eastern Qinghai, southern Shandong, and Shanxi provinces in China.[5][7] It has purple flowers.
- A. viridiflora var. viridiflora, which is native to China (Gansu, Hebei, Heilongjiang, Hubei, Jilin, Liaoning, Nei Mongol, Ningxia, Shaanxi, Shandong, and Shanxi provinces), Japan, Mongolia, and Siberia. It has yellow-green flowers. Some authorities consider A. viridiflora var. viridiflora to be a synonym of A. viridiflora rather than a variety thereof.[8]
The synonym Aquilegia canadensis is not to be confused with Aquilegia canadensis L., which is a different species of Aquilegia.[9]
A. viridiflora 'Chocolate Soldier' is a cultivar with chocolate-brown flowers.[10] It grows up to 30 cm (12 in) tall.[11]
Distribution and habitat
editAquilegia viridiflora is native to Japan, Mongolia, Russia (Buryatia, Tuva, and Zabaykalsky Krai in southern Siberia and the Amur Oblast in the Russian Far East[12]), and to the Gansu, Hebei, Heilongjiang, Hubei, Jilin, Liaoning, Nei Mongol, Ningxia, eastern Qinghai, Shaanxi, Shandong, and Shanxi provinces in northern China. It grows in forests, grassy slopes, in damp places and by streams, at altitudes between 200 and 2,400 m (660 and 7,870 ft).[5]
Ecology
editAquilegia viridiflora flowers from May to July,[5] and is pollinated by early spring bees of the genus Anthophora.[13]
Conservation
editAs of November 2024[update], the species has not been assessed for the IUCN Red List.[14]
Uses
editAquilegia viridiflora is grown as an ornamental plant.[15]
References
edit- ^ a b "Aquilegia viridiflora Pall." Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 26 November 2024.
- ^ "Aquilegia viridiflora (Columbine, Green Columbine)". North Carolina Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox. Retrieved 2021-03-22.
- ^ "Aquilegia viridiflora | green-flowered columbine". rhs.org.uk. Royal Horticultural Society. Retrieved 2021-03-22.
- ^ "Aquilegia viridiflora". Missouri Botanical Garden. Retrieved 26 November 2024.
- ^ a b c d e Dezhi, Fu; Robinson, Orbélia R. "Aquilegia viridiflora". Flora of China. Vol. 6. Retrieved 26 November 2024 – via eFloras.org, Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis, MO & Harvard University Herbaria, Cambridge, MA.
- ^ "Aquilegia viridiflora var. atropurpurea". National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI). Retrieved 26 November 2024.
- ^ "Aquilegia viridiflora var. atropurpurea". rhs.org.uk. Royal Horticultural Society. Retrieved 2021-03-22.
- ^ "Aquilegia viridiflora var. viridiflora". World Flora Online. Retrieved 26 November 2024.
- ^ "Aquilegia canadensis L." Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 26 November 2024.
- ^ "Aquilegia viridiflora 'Chocolate Soldier'". BBC Gardeners' World Magazine. Retrieved 2021-03-22.
- ^ "Chocolate plants - in pictures". The Guardian. 2012-04-06. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2021-03-23.
- ^ "Aquilegia viridiflora Pall." World Flora Online. Retrieved 26 November 2024.
- ^ Shaulo, Dmitri N.; Erst, Andrey S. (2011). "Новый Вид Aquilegia (Ranunculaceae) Из Западного Саяна, Северная Азия" [A new species of Aquilegia (Ranunculaceae) from West Sayan, North Asia]. Turczaninowia (in Russian). 14 (3): 28–34. Retrieved 27 November 2024.
- ^ "Aquilegia - genus". IUCN Red List. 2024. Retrieved 25 November 2024.
- ^ "10 aquilegias to grow". BBC Gardeners' World Magazine. Retrieved 2021-03-23.
External links
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Media related to Aquilegia viridiflora at Wikimedia Commons