Hyacinthoides hispanica 西班牙藍鈴花

Common name: Spanish Bluebell
Scientific name: Hyacinthoides hispanica 西班牙藍鈴花
Genus: Hyacinthoides 藍鈴花屬
Family: Asparagaceae 天門冬科*, asparagus family

Remarks: Hyacinthoides hispanica is native to western Spain and Portugal. Since it is difficult to distinguish between Hyacinthoides hispanica and the hybrid Hyacinthoides x massartiana (Hyacinthoides hispanica x non-scripta.) The photo below maybe the hybrid. Further investigation is needed to confirm the identity. *Asparagaceae is previously belonged to the Liliaceae 百合科, the lily family.

Origin: Neophyte (established after 1500 AD).

Date:  26th April

Found in a path, just outside a building. Maybe a garden escape.

Leaves 35 mm wide. (vs leaves 7-15 (-20) mm wide in Hyacinthoides non-scripta 藍鈴花, bluebell)

 Inflorescence erect. (vs inflorescence dropping at the top in Hyacinthoides non-scripta 藍鈴花, bluebell) 

Flowers all round the flower stalk. (vs flowers are one-sided in Hyacinthoides non-scripta 藍鈴花, bluebell)

Flower buds, enlarged below.

Flower bud and the bracts. (note the pair of bracts is different from that in Hyacinthoides non-scripta 藍鈴花, bluebell)

Flower, enlarged below.

Stamens blue. (vs stamens cream or yellow in Hyacinthoides non-scripta 藍鈴花, bluebell)

Hyacinthoides non-scripta 藍鈴花

Common name: Bluebell
Scientific name: Hyacinthoides non-scripta 藍鈴花
Genus: Hyacinthoides 藍鈴花屬
Family: Asparagaceae 天門冬科*, asparagus family

Remarks*: It is previously belonged to the Liliaceae 百合科, the lily family.

Origin: native

Date:  13th, 25th April (& 19th May)

A perennial, can reach up to 50 cm. Leaves all basal.

Leaves 7-15 (-20) mm wide. (vs leaves 35 mm wide in Hyacinthoides hispanica 西班牙藍鈴花, Spanish bluebell)

Inflorescence dropping at the top, flowers are one-sided. (vs inflorescence erect, flowers all round the flower stalk in Hyacinthoides hispanica 西班牙藍鈴花, Spanish bluebell)

Flowers tubular. (vs flowers conical or bell-shaped in the latter.)

Flower buds and the pair of bracts at the base of each flower.

The tip of the petals revolute (curled right back). (vs the petals are spread out in Hyacinthoides hispanica 西班牙藍鈴花, Spanish bluebell)

5 stamens and 1 style.

Anthers are cream or yellow. (vs anthers are blue in Hyacinthoides hispanica 西班牙藍鈴花, Spanish bluebell)

Few plants have the petals pink in color.

Tip of the petals revolute.

Photo enlarged below.

Anthers are cream.

002 (19th May)

004 (19th May)

Arum maculatum 斑點疆南星

Common name: Lords-and-ladies, Cuckoo-point
Scientific name: Arum maculatum 斑點疆南星
Genus: Arum 疆南星屬
Family: Araceae 天南星科, arum family

Remarks:

Origin: native

Date:  13rd, 8th April (flowering) & 6th August (fruits)

An erect, glabrous perennial, can reach up to 50 cm.

Leaf. 

Leaf blade 7-20 cm. (vs leaf blade 15-35 cm in Arum italicum 意大利疆南星, Italian lords-and-ladies)

Some of the plant with the blades black-spotted.

Young leaves look very differently from mature leaves.

Enlarged young leaf.

Flower bud not yet open.

Inflorescence appears from the base of the stem above the ground.

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Flowers opened. (on 18th April)

Each inflorescence (spadix) comes from one plant. Erect spathe 佛焰苞 (a large bract) 10-25 cm, base completely enclosing flowers. (vs erect spathe 15-40 cm, with tip drooping forward in Arum italicum 意大利疆南星, Italian lords-and-ladies)

Spadix 肉穗花序, 佛焰花序 7-12 cm, about half as long as spathe, upper sterile portion (appendix) dull purple (rarely yellow). (vs spadix  aboute one-third as long as spathe, upper sterile portion yellow in Arum italicum 意大利疆南星, Italian lords-and-ladies)

Look from above to try to see the unisexual flowers hidden from the spathe.

The yellow spider-like structures just below the stipe of the dull purple appendix are the staminodes 退化雄蕊 (sterile stamens). Further below should be the fertile male flowers,  pistillodes (sterile pistils) and then the fertile female flowers. But these structures could not be seen from the above photo. 

Almost all the flowers in this location have the flower buds eaten half by unknown animals. (13rd April)

Enlarged to see the lower part of the spadix. The yellow spider-like structures at the top of this broken spadix are the pistillodes (sterile pistils) 退化雌蕊. Further down the spadix are the fertile female flowers (ovary and the stigma could be seen).

Another eaten half flower bud.

Enlarged to see the lowest part of the spadix, the female flowers.

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Fruiting now. (Took on 6th August at another location.)

Fruits still need some time to ripe. (6th August(

Fragaria vesca 野草莓, 森林草莓

Common name: Wild Strawberry
Scientific name: Fragaria vesca 野草莓, 森林草莓
Genus: Fragaria 草莓屬
Family: Rosaceae 薔薇科, rose family

Remarks: The specimens below are found in the wild but it is near a road. It is still uncertain whether it is belonged to different species such as Fragaria moschata 麝香草莓, Hautbois strawberry or Fragaria viridis 綠色草莓. Further follow-ups are needed to confirm its identity.

Origin: native

Date:  10th April

A pubescent, soloniferous perennial, can reach up to 30 cm.

Base of the plant, showing the short stem.

The young shoot at the base of the plant.

Leaf ternate, bright green.

Leaflets sessile, apical tooth as long as or longer than its neighbours. (vs leaflet apical tooth shorter than its neighbours in Potentilla sterilis 無子草莓, Barren Strawberry)

Underside of the leaflet.

Underside of the leaflet.

The flowering stalks and the flower.

The flower bud.

Nearly open flower bud.

Photo enlarged below.

Underside of the flower showing the green sepals.

Photo enlarged below.

Flower 12-18 mm across. (vs flower of 10-15 mm across in Potentilla sterilis 無子草莓, Barren Strawberry)

Photo enlarged below.

Petals white, contiguous (touching another) or overlapping (some flowers like the one above have a small gap between neighbouring petals, but the gap is not as large as that in Potentilla sterilis 無子草莓, Barren Strawberry). 

Petals are longer than sepals. (vs petals are as long as sepals in Potentilla sterilis 無子草莓, Barren Strawberry)

There are altogether 20 stamens. You could see that for every 3 long stamens, there is 1 shorter stamens. And there are a lot of styles ate the center of the flower.