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Scilla
 
 
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Scilla (squill) is a genus
Genus

A genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the classification of living and fossil organisms. The taxonomic ranks are domain , kingdom , phylum, class , order , family , genus, and species....
 of bulb-forming
Bulb

A bulb is an underground vertical shoot that has modified leaf that are used as food storage organs by a dormancy plant.A bulb's leaf bases generally do not support leaves, but contain food reserves to enable the plant to survive adverse conditions....
 perennial herbs in the Hyacinthaceae
Hyacinthaceae

Hyacinthaceae is the botanical name of a family of flowering plants. The plants are herbaceous perennials that grow from bulbs, and include several popular spring-blooming garden plants, including Hyacinth , grape hyacinth , Hyacinthoides and Scilla ....
. The 90-odd species are found in woodlands, subalpine meadows, and seashores across the Old World. Their flower
Flower

A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproduction structure found in flowering plants . The biological function of a flower is to mediate the union of male sperm with female ovum in order to produce seeds....
s are usually blue, but white, pink, and purple types are known; most flower in early spring, but a few are autumn-flowering.

Several African species previously classified in Scilla have been removed to the genus Ledebouria
Ledebouria

Ledebouria is a genus of African bulbous perennial plant herbs in the hyacinth family Hyacinthaceae. Most members were previously part of the genus Scilla....
.






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Scilla (squill) is a genus
Genus

A genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the classification of living and fossil organisms. The taxonomic ranks are domain , kingdom , phylum, class , order , family , genus, and species....
 of bulb-forming
Bulb

A bulb is an underground vertical shoot that has modified leaf that are used as food storage organs by a dormancy plant.A bulb's leaf bases generally do not support leaves, but contain food reserves to enable the plant to survive adverse conditions....
 perennial herbs in the Hyacinthaceae
Hyacinthaceae

Hyacinthaceae is the botanical name of a family of flowering plants. The plants are herbaceous perennials that grow from bulbs, and include several popular spring-blooming garden plants, including Hyacinth , grape hyacinth , Hyacinthoides and Scilla ....
. The 90-odd species are found in woodlands, subalpine meadows, and seashores across the Old World. Their flower
Flower

A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproduction structure found in flowering plants . The biological function of a flower is to mediate the union of male sperm with female ovum in order to produce seeds....
s are usually blue, but white, pink, and purple types are known; most flower in early spring, but a few are autumn-flowering.

Several African species previously classified in Scilla have been removed to the genus Ledebouria
Ledebouria

Ledebouria is a genus of African bulbous perennial plant herbs in the hyacinth family Hyacinthaceae. Most members were previously part of the genus Scilla....
. The best known of these is the common houseplant still sometimes known as Scilla violacea but now properly Ledebouria socialis.

Species include:
  • Scilla amoena (Star Squill/Star Hyacinth)
  • Scilla autumnalis (Autumn Squill)
  • Scilla bifolia (Alpine Squill)
  • Scilla bithynica (Bithynian Squill)
  • Scilla buekkensis
    Scilla buekkensis

    Scilla buekkensis is a species of Scilla native to some beech and hornbeam forests in Hungary and Slovakia in Central Europe.This plant derives its name from the B?kk Mountains in North-East Hungary....
  • Scilla cilicica
  • Scilla elisae
  • Scilla drunensis
  • Scilla hohenackeri
  • Scilla hyacinthoides
    Scilla hyacinthoides

    Scilla hyacinthoides is a geophyte, belonging to the Liliaceae family. It is native to the Middle East, though it was also brought to France by the Turks....
  • Scilla kladnii
  • Scilla liliohyacinthus (Pyrenean Squill)
  • Scilla litardierei
  • Scilla maritima
  • Scilla messeniaca
  • Scilla mischtschenkoana (Tubergen Squill)
  • Scilla monophyllos
  • Scilla natalensis
    Scilla natalensis

    Scilla natalensis is a Bulb perennial herb in the Scilla genus....
  • Scilla persica
  • Scilla peruviana (Portuguese Squill
    Portuguese Squill

    Portuguese Squill is a species of Scilla native to the western Mediterranean region in Iberian Peninsula, Italy, and northwest Africa.It is a bulb-bearing herbaceous perennial plant....
    /Corymbose Squill/Cuban Lily)
  • Scilla puschkinioides
  • Scilla rosenii
  • Scilla scilloides
  • Scilla siberica (Siberian Squill
    Siberian squill

    Siberian squill , also known as the wood squill or spring beauty, is a small perennial plant native to Siberia.This plant grows to 15 cm tall and produces small, violet-blue flowers with blue pollen early in the spring....
    )
  • Scilla siehei
  • Scilla spetana
  • Scilla verna
    Scilla verna

    Scilla verna, commonly known as spring squill, is a flowering plant native to Western Europe. It belongs to the squill genus Scilla in the Hyacinthaceae family....
     (Spring Squill)
  • Scilla vindobonensis


Scilla peruviana is of interest for its name; it is a native of southwest Europe
Europe

Europe is, conventionally, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally divided from Asia to its east by the water divide of the Ural Mountains, the Ural , the Caspian Sea, and by the Caucasus Mountains to the southeast....
, not of Peru
Peru

Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
. When Carolus Linnaeus
Carolus Linnaeus

Carl Linnaeus was a Sweden botanist, physician, and zoologist, who laid the foundations for the modern scheme of binomial nomenclature. He is known as the father of modern alpha taxonomy, and is also considered one of the fathers of modern ecology....
 described the species in 1753, he was given specimens imported from Spain
Spain

Spain or the Kingdom of Spain , is a country located in Southern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula.The Spanish constitution does not establish any official denomination of the country, even though Espa?a , Estado espa?ol and Naci?n espa?ola are used interchangeably....
 aboard a ship
Ship

A ship is a large watercraft that floats on water. Ships are generally distinguished from boats based on size. Ships may be found on lakes, seas, and rivers and they allow for a variety of activities, such as the ferry or cargo ships, fishing, cruise ship, Coast guard, and warship....
 named Peru, and was misled into thinking the specimens had come from that country. The rules of botanical naming
International Code of Botanical Nomenclature

The International Code of Botanical Nomenclature is the set of rules and recommendations dealing with the formal botanical names that are given to plants....
 do not allow a scientific name to be changed merely because it is potentially confusing.

Cultivation and uses

Many species, notably S. siberica, are grown in garden
Garden

A garden is a planned space, usually outdoors, set aside for the display, cultivation, and enjoyment of plants and other forms of nature. The garden can incorporate both natural and man-made materials....
s for their attractive early spring flowers.

Squill liquid extract, a preparation of powdered squill bulbs extracted in ethanol
Ethanol

Ethanol, also called ethyl alcohol, pure alcohol, grain alcohol, or drinking alcohol, is a volatility , flammable, colorless liquid....
, is an ingredient in cough medicine
Cough medicine

A cough medicine is a medicinal medication used to treat coughing and related conditions. Dry coughs are treated with cough suppressants that suppress the body's urge to cough, while productive coughs are treated with expectorants that loosen mucus from the respiratory tract....
s and cardiac surgery
Heart

The heart is a muscle organ in all vertebrates responsible for pumping blood through the blood vessels by repeated, rhythmic contractions, or a similar structure in annelids, mollusks, and arthropods....
.

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