Garden Grape-hyacinth
Garden Grape-hyacinth on a bank
On Ham stone
Flower spike with bells with pale teeth
Corolla openings - stamens and styles
Close-up of 3-lobed stigma and 6 stamens
Tripartite seed capsules
Leaves
Muscari armeniacum
Asparagaceae
March to May
It is scattered throughout the country, but is more common
in southern areas.
See the BSBI distribution map for Garden Grape-hyacinth
It is a neophyte imported into the UK in the 1870s and first
found in the wild in the 1890s.
It has become naturalised in sand dunes, grasslands,
hedgerows,
waste ground and brown-field sites, on walls and
by roads.
Garden Grape-hyacinth is a bulbous, perennial herb
growing up to 35cm.
The flowerheads are grape-like with a tight cluster
of small blue bells up to 7cm.
Each flower is made up of 6 fused blue tepals which
form the bell. Each petal has a terminal pale tooth.
The 6 stamens and the 3-lobed stigma are enclosed
in the bell.
The fruits are tripartite capsules
The leaves are dark green and readily log (fall over).
They spread by division of the bulbs and by seed,
forming patches.
It is difficult to tell apart from Muscari neglectum
(Grape Hyacinth), which is a native plant largely
restricted to East Anglia and garden escapes.
Previous page: Garden Arabis
Next page: Giant Herb-Robert
Garden Grape-hyacinth on a bank
On Ham stone
Flower spike with bells with pale teeth
Corolla openings - stamens and styles
Close-up of 3-lobed stigma and 6 stamens
Tripartite seed capsules
Leaves
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