Amaryllidaceae

Family: Amaryllidaceae

Life > eukaryotes > Archaeoplastida > Chloroplastida > Charophyta > Streptophytina > Plantae (land plants) > Tracheophyta (vascular plants) > Euphyllophyta > Lignophyta (woody plants) > Spermatophyta (seed plants) > Angiospermae (flowering plants) > Monocotyledons > Order: Asparagales

About 59 genera and 800 species (warm temperate and tropical regions worldwide), of which 18 genera and 233 species native to southern Africa (the region with the highest diversity of amaryllids in the world). An additional two genus and two species are naturalised, and an additional 11 genera and 29 species are cultivated in Southern Africa.

Genera native to southern Africa

List from Snijman (2000) and Plants of Southern Africa - an Online Checklist (SANBI).

Amaryllis The 2 species are endemic to the Northern Cape and Western Cape within the winter-rainfall region.
Ammocharis Seven species, native to sub-Saharan Africa, with six species native to southern Africa.
Apodolirion Six species, all endemic to southern Africa.
Boophone Two species, both native to southern Africa. Boophone disticha is widely distributed in sub-Saharan Africa.
Brunsvigia Eighteen species, all endemic to southern Africa.
Clivia Six species, all endemic to southern Africa.
Crinum About 65 species worldwide, found mainly in the tropics, with 22 species native to southern Africa . An additional three exotic species are cultivated in the region.
Crossyne Two species endemic to the winter-rainfall regions of the Western Cape and Northern Cape, in South Africa.
Cryptostephanus One species: Cryptostephanus densiflorus.
Cyrtanthus Bulb contains non-lethal haemolytic saponin and alkaloids, and causes vomiting and diarrhoea if eaten. Fifty-one species are native to southern Africa and there is a further species (Cyrtanthus welwitschii) occurring further north, its distribution including Angola and Malawi.
Gethyllis Twenty-five species, endemic to southern Africa, occurring in semi-arid regions.
Haemanthus Twenty-two species, endemic to southern Africa.
Hessea Thirteen species, all endemic to southern Africa.
Namaquanula One species: Namaquanula bruce-bayeri.
Nerine Bulbs contain poisonous alkaloids, but not usually enough to cause death if eaten. Twenty-four species, all endemic to southern Africa.
Pancratium About 20 species, found in the Mediterranean region, southern Asia, the Canary Islands and Africa. Pancratium tenuifolium is the only species native to southern Africa, found in Namibia, Botswana and the Northern Province. In addition, Pancratium canariense from the Canary Islands, and Pancratium maritinum from the Mediterranean region, are cultivated in southern Africa.
Scadoxus Nine species, native to Africa, with four species native to southern Africa. Bulbs can contain toxic alkaloids.
Strumaria Twenty-seven species, endemic to southern Africa.

Genera naturalised in southern Africa

Habranthus

Habranthus robustus is naturalised in the region. In addition, Habranthus tubispathus is cultivated in the region.

Zephyranthes

Zephyranthes grandiflora originates from Central America and has become established in coastal areas of KwaZulu-Natal. An additional four species are cultivated in southern Africa.

Other genera, cultivated in southern Africa

List from Glenn (2002). The species name is listed for genera with only one species recorded in southern Africa. Doryanthes now included in Doryanthaceae in the order Asparagales.

Calostemma purpureum Native to Australia.
Chlidanthus fragrans Native to Peru.
Eucharis grandiflora (Amazon lily) Native to Colombia.
Griffinia An unidentified species recorded as being cultivated in southern Africa.
Hippeastrum About 90 species and over 600 hybrids, native from Mexico to Argentina, and the Caribbean. Two species and one hybrid are cultivated in southern Africa.
Hymenocallis Sixty-three species, native to tropical and subtropical South America, with four species cultivated in southern Africa.
Leucojum aestivum (Summer snowdrop) Native from Europe to the Caucasus.
Lycoris radiata Native to Japan.
Narcissus (daffodil genus) About 27 species, native to Europe, North Africa and Asia, with five species cultivated in southern Africa.
Polianthes tuberosa (Tuberose) Native to Mexico.
Sprekelia formosissima (Jacobean lily, Maltese cross) Native to Mexico and Guatemala.

See list of important poisonous species in the Amaryllidaceae that are found in southern Africa.

Publications

Glen, H.F. 2002. Cultivated plants of southern Africa. Jacana, Johannesburg.
Goldblatt, P. 1976. Chromosome cytology of Hessea, Strumaria and Carpolyza (Amaryllidaceae). Annals of the Missouri Botanical Garden 63: 314–320.
Snijman, D. 1993. Review of the systematics of the Strumariinae (Amaryllidaceae). Herbertia 48: 52–57.
Snijman, D.A. 2000. Amaryllidaceae. In: Seed Plants of Southern Africa: Families and Genera (Ed. O.A. Leistner). Strelitzia 10. National Botanical Institute, Pretoria, pp. 570-576.
Snijman, D.A. & Linder, H.P. 1996. Phylogenetic relationships, seed characters, and dispersal system evolution in Amaryllideae (Amaryllidaceae). Annals of the Missouri Botanical Garden 83: 362-386.
Vorster, P.J. & Spreeth, A.D. 1996. Leaf anatomy and generic delimitation in South African Amaryllidaceae. In: L.J.G. van der Maesen, X.M. van der Burgt & J.M. van Medenbach de Rooy (eds), The biodiversity of African plants. Proceedings of the 14th AETFAT Congress: 513–516. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht.

Text by Hamish Robertson