The rules for posting are simple!

1. Every Friday post a photo that includes one or more flowers.
2. Please only post photos you have authority to use.
3. Include a link to this blog in your post - http://floralfridayfoto.blogspot.com/
4. Leave the link to your FloralFridayFoto post below on inlinkz.
5. Visit other blogs listed ... comment & enjoy!

When to Post:
inlinkz will be available every Thursday and will remain open until the next Wednesday.

Thursday 7 February 2013

FFF64 - EUSTOMA/LISIANTHUS

Eustoma, a genus of three species in the family Gentianaceae, grows natively in warm regions of the Southern United States, Mexico, Caribbean and northern South America. Examples grow mostly in grassland and in areas of disturbed ground. These flowers are commonly known as Lisianthus flowers.

They are herbaceous annuals, growing to 15 – 60 cm tall, with bluish green, slightly succulent leaves, and large funnel-shaped flowers growing on long straight stems, sometimes erect single stems, other times growing on branching stems that can rise to be one metre tall. The flowers can grow up to 5 cm across and can be found in a variety of colours. They have been found in all shades of pink, purple, white, and blue. In addition, some are bicolored and some are occasionally found in yellow or carmine-red.

Lisianthus flowers are either single flowered or double flowered. They are usually 33 cm to one metre tall. Although there are dwarf varieties the only grow up to 20 cm in height. Lisianthus flowers are tricky to grow and require some maintenance. They have tiny seeds that must be sown on the surface not buried, and they must be planted in rich well drained soil as well as exposed to full sun. Make sure to keep them moist but do not over water, over watering may result in the growth and development of fungal diseases.

Lisisanthus flowers will begin to bloom in early summer and some will continue to bloom throughout the later months of the summer. Lisianthus plants are available all year round for sale though. When cut, the flowers can last anywhere from two to three weeks in a vase, they are a very elegant flower that look nice on display.

Eustoma russellianum is particularly popular and has a number of cultivars that are grown for the cut-flower market. The cultivated flower is also often known as Lisianthus, Texas Bluebell, Prairie Gentian, Tulip Gentian or just Gentian, although the last name can cause confusion with the related Gentian plant genus. Eustoma is named after the Greek words eu-, which means beautiful, and the word stoma which means mouth. Lisianthus on the other hand comes from the Greek word lysis, meaning dissolution as well as the word anthos, which means flower.

Join me for Floral Friday Fotos by linking your flower photos below, and please leave a comment once you have done so!

5 comments:

  1. I've heard about Lisianthus, but i didn't know it is blue or are there other colors. If only they will grow here i love it most specially because of that dark blue color. How big is the flower's diameter?

    ReplyDelete
  2. Good morning,
    love your amazing macro, a wonderful blossom!
    Wish you a nice Friday,
    moni

    my flowers are on:
    http://www.reflexionblog.de

    ReplyDelete
  3. I love the blue color:)
    Have a nice flowering weekend:)

    ReplyDelete
  4. Gorgeous flower! Thank you for hosting. Have a wonderful weekend.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Beautiful shot of a beautiful flower. Thank you for hosting the party!

    ReplyDelete