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Grape hyacinth
The low-growing flower clusters of the grape hyacinth (Muscari armeniacum).
grape hyacinth
plant
Also known as: Muscari
grape hyacinth, (genus Muscari), genus of about 50 species of small, bulbous perennials native to the Mediterranean region. Grape hyacinths are often planted as spring-flowering garden ornamentals. Some cultivated species readily naturalize and can become weedy.
Taxonomy
- Kingdom: Plantae
- Division: Angiosperm
- Order: Asparagales
- Family: Asparagaceae (formerly Hyacinthaceae)
- Genus: Muscari
Most species of the genus have dense clusters of blue, white, yellow, or pink urn-shaped flowers that are borne at the tip of a leafless flower stalk. The flowers of some species have a musky odor. The leaves are long and narrow and emerge from an underground bulb. The fruit is a capsule.
Grape hyacinthClose-up of starch grape hyacinth (Muscari neglectum) in bloom.
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica This article was most recently revised and updated by Melissa Petruzzello.
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