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Hyacinthus orientalis

Common name:	Hyacinth	Family:	Hyacinthaceae
Author:	L.	Botanical references:	50, 93, 200
Synonyms:
Known Hazards:	Poisonous, the sap can cause dermatitis[76]. The toxins are concentrated in the bulb[200].
Range:	W. Asia. Naturalized in Europe around the Mediterranean.
Habitat:	Among rocks, up to 2000 metres in Turkey[93]
Edibility Rating (1-5):	0	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	0

Other Common Names:	From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
	Garden Hyacinth [E,B,P], Hyacint [D],
Epithets:	From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets
	orientalis = eastern;

Physical Characteristics

Bulb growing to 0.3m by 0.1m . It is not frost tender. It is in flower from April to May. The scented flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Bees. We rate it 0/5 for edibility and 0/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy) and medium (loamy) soils and requires well-drained soil. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It requires moist soil.

Habitats and Possible Locations

Cultivated Beds.

Edible Uses

None known

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

None known

Other Uses

Dye; Essential.

An essential oil obtained from the flowers is used in perfumery[61, 171]. 1kg of the oil is obtained from 6,000kg of flowers[46].
A blue dye is obtained from the flowers[168].

Cultivation details

Easily grown in a well-drained sandy soil in full sun[90, 200]. Prefers a moderately rich soil[1].
The dormant bulbs are fairly hardy and will withstand soil temperatures down to at least -5°c[214].
A very ornamental plant[1], there are many named varieties[200]. When grown outdoors in Britain the bulb often gradually deteriorates each year due to a lack of summer heat that is required to fully ripen the bulb[1]. Eventually they look more like a bluebell than a hyacinth[K].
Bulbs should be planted out 7cm deep in October[1].
The flowers have a strong sweet fragrance that can fill the air for a considerable distance[245].

Propagation

Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in a cold frame in a light sandy soil[1]. If sown thinly, the seedlings can be left in their pots for the first year, though give them regular liquid feeds to make sure that they get sufficient nutrient. Prick out the seedlings about 3 to a pot and grow on for 1 - 2 more years before planting out into their permanent positions when they are dormant[K].
Division in the autumn. Plant the small offsets 5cm deep[1]. Larger bulbs can be replanted direct into their permanent positions, but it is best to pot up smaller bulbs and grow them on for a year in a cold frame before planting them out when dormant in late summer.
Scooping and scoring.

Scent

Flowers: Fresh: The flowers have a strong sweet fragrance that can fill the air for a considerable distance.

Cultivars

'': There are some named forms for this species, but these have been developed for their ornamental value and not for their other uses. Unless you particularly require the special characteristics of any of these cultivars, we would generally recommend that you grow the natural species for its useful properties. We have, therefore, not listed the cultivars in this database[K].

Suppliers

For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.

Web References

[E] Ethnobotany Data (common names, uses, countries) from the Ethnobotany Database.
[V] Images from the Vascular Plant Image Gallery of the Texas A&M Bioinformatics Working Group.
[B] Data (Latin & Common names, other references) from the BONAP's Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
[PHARM] Phytochemical Data (common names, uses, countries) from Dr Duke's Phytochemical Database.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
[HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database

See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.

Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.

References

[K] Ken Fern
Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.

[1] F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951
Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaces in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).

[46] Uphof. J. C. Th. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim 1959
An excellent and very comprehensive guide but it only gives very short descriptions of the uses without any details of how to utilize the plants. Not for the casual reader.

[50] ? Flora Europaea Cambridge University Press 1964
An immense work in 6 volumes (including the index). The standard reference flora for europe, it is very terse though and with very little extra information. Not for the casual reader.

[61] Usher. G. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable 1974 ISBN 0094579202
Forget the sexist title, this is one of the best books on the subject. Lists a very extensive range of useful plants from around the world with very brief details of the uses. Not for the casual reader.

[76] Cooper. M. and Johnson. A. Poisonous Plants in Britain and their Effects on Animals and Man. HMSO 1984 ISBN 0112425291
Concentrates mainly on the effects of poisonous plants to livestock.

[90] Phillips. R. and Rix. M. Bulbs Pan Books 1989 ISBN 0-330-30253-1
Superbly illustrated, it gives brief details on cultivation and native habitat.

[93] Davis. P. H. Flora of Turkey. Edinburgh University Press 1965
Not for the casual reader, this is an immense work in many volumes. Some details of plant uses and habitats.

[168] Grae. I. Nature's Colors - Dyes from Plants. MacMillan Publishing Co. New York. 1974 ISBN 0-02-544950-8
A very good and readable book on dyeing.

[171] Hill. A. F. Economic Botany. The Maple Press 1952
Not very comprehensive, but it is quite readable and goes into some a bit of detail about the plants it does cover.

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

[214] Matthews. V. The New Plantsman. Volume 1, 1994. Royal Horticultural Society 1994 ISBN 1352-4186
A quarterly magazine, it has articles on Himalayacalamus hookerianus, hardy Euphorbias and an excellent article on Hippophae spp.

[245] Genders. R. Scented Flora of the World. Robert Hale. London. 1994 ISBN 0-7090-5440-8
An excellent, comprehensive book on scented plants giving a few other plant uses and brief cultivation details. There are no illustrations.

Readers Comments

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Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future - Species Database. Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
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We make no claims of magical effects or supernatural powers for any item in this catalog. In spite of legendary attributes or occult and craft tradition, such items are offered as curios only and beliefs concerning their magical effectiveness are related only for historical interest.