Opposite to the sun

Gerbera is a genus of plants in the (daisy family). It was named in honour of Dutch botanist and naturalist Traugott Gerber (1710-1743) who travelled... more

by Gloria Pasko

Title

Opposite to the sun

Artist

Gloria Pasko

Medium

Photograph

Description

Gerbera is a genus of plants in the (daisy family). It was named in honour of Dutch botanist and naturalist Traugott Gerber (1710-1743) who travelled extensively in Russia and was a friend of Carolus Linnaeus.
Gerbera is native to tropical regions of South America, Africa and Asia. The first scientific description of a Gerbera was made by J.D. Hooker in Curtis's Botanical Magazine in 1889 when he described Gerbera jamesonii, a South African species also known as Transvaal daisy or Barberton Daisy. Gerbera is also commonly known as the African Daisy.
Gerbera species bear a large capitulum with striking, two-lipped ray florets in yellow, orange, white, pink or red colours. The capitulum, which has the appearance of a single flower, is actually composed of hundreds of individual flowers. The morphology of the flowers varies depending on their position in the capitulum. The flower heads can be as small as 7 cm (Gerbera mini 'Harley') in diameter or up to 12 cm (Gerbera �Golden Serena�).
Gerbera is very popular and widely used as a decorative garden plant or as cut flowers. The domesticated cultivars are mostly a result of a cross between Gerbera jamesonii and another South African species Gerbera viridifolia.[4] The cross is known as Gerbera hybrida. Thousands of cultivars exist. They vary greatly in shape and size. Colours include white, yellow, orange, red, and pink. The centre of the flower is sometimes black. Often the same flower can have petals of several different colours.

Uploaded

December 1st, 2014