sleepydick
Family
AsparagaceaeScientific Name
Ornithogalum umbellatum
Other Common Names:
star-of-bethlehem
summer snowflake; star-flower
Pyrenees star of bethlehem; nap-at-noon
Habit
Star-of-Bethlehem thrive in average, medium wet, well-drained soils in full sun to part shade. They have a wide range of soil tolerance. Plants reproduce by underground bulbs. Bulbs resprout in fall or spring, following summer kill of above-ground vegetation. Plants begin flowering by mid spring. Seeds are dispersed and the plant soon senesces by late spring or early summer.
Leaves
The leaves are shiny and dark green with a distinctive white midrib, rounded, smooth and do not have ligules, hair, or auricles. Leaves emerge from bulbs in the ground and resemble the leaves of onion or garlic. Leaves are hollow in cross section.
Identifying Characteristics
Native to Argentina and Uruguay, star-of-Bethlehem features grass-like foliage and solitary star-shaped flowers on 6 tall stems in early spring. Grapehyacinth is a similar weed to star-of-Bethlehem. It only lacks the mid-veins that run through the length of the leaves.
Flower Seed Head
Flowers are bright white to sometimes bluish. They form in branching clusters at the end of leafless stalks. Each flower has 6 petals that are lanceolate to oblong and have a green stripe on the underside of the petals. Flowers have a mild spicy fragrance, and the foliage when bruised emits an onion-like aroma.
Seed Fruit
Fruit are 3 lobed oval shaped with each oval containing several black egg shaped seeds that have a granular surface. Plants reproduces by seed and bulblets and requires a warm (70 to 80) - cool (32 to 35F) - warm (45 to 60) annual thermo periodic cycle.
Where Found
Star-of-Bethlehem is a weed of lawns, pastures and perennial row crops or gardens. Plants are especially problematic in warm-season turfgrass where they are unsightly green patches in an otherwise dormant turfgrass in early spring.
Growth Habit
upright and nonwoody
Thorns or Spines
not present
Approximate Flower Diameter
Varies:
nickle,
quarter,
half dollar,
larger
Dominant Flower Color
Varies:
white,
blue,
green
Flower Symmetry
radial symmetery
Leaf Hairs
no hairs
Leaf Shape
needle
Leaf Margin
entire
Leaf Structure
simple
Leaf Stalk
none
Stem Hairs
no hairs
Stem Cross Section
round or oval
Milky Sap
not present
Ochrea
not present
Root Structure
fibrous
Life Cycle
perennial
Plant Type
Grass-like