Crocus ochroleucus (Crocus ochroleucus)
Description
“Pet poisonous” – Toxic parts: entire plant Crocus ochroleucus is a cream-colored crocus native to Syria, Lebanon, Israel, Palestine and Turkey. Perennial. Tubercle small, proliferous, surrounded with membranous brown tunics. Leaves 4-6, appearing together with flowers, strongly canaliculate, 1.5–2 mm wide. Basal spathe often surrounding numerous scapes. Floral spathe diphyllous, partly enclosing a long tube. Perianth 2–3 cm ; tepals elliptical-ovate, cream-white, yellow and bearded at base. Anthers whitish, longer than filament. Stigmas orange. Rocky places, light soils. Lower and middle mountains, South, Hermon. The cream-white color of this crocus is at origin of specific name ochroleucus, which is derived from the Greek ôchros , yellow, and leukos, white. The Latin name Crocus, and the Greek name krokos which gave it birth, were used by ancients to designate the peculiar species with violet flowers: Crocus sativus, whose large stigmas, highly fragrant and of a beautiful orange yellow tint, produce the famous saffron used in coloration of certain food and liquors. The cream-colored Crocus, known in Lebanon as hirsanneen, grows abundantly after autumn first rainfalls. Its tubercles are sometimes eaten. Crocus has 3 stamens. This characteristic, among others, allows to differentiate it from meadow saffron which belongs to the Lily Family and has 6 stamens.
Taxonomic tree
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Domain: Eukarya
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Kingdom: Plantae
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Phylum:
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Class: Liliopsida
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Order: Asparagales
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Family: Iridaceae
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Genus: Crocus
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