Daffodils - Digital Paint

by Debbie Portwood

Title

Daffodils - Digital Paint

Artist

Debbie Portwood

Medium

Photograph - Photography Photomanipulation

Description

Close view of two big beautiful Daffodils, yellow with orange centers. This version has been given a soft digital paint for artistic appeal. Wonderful for any wall in your home or office or perhaps a greeting card. Many more wonderful works can be found in my various galleries, from photographs and photoart to digital creations and abstracts. Thanks for browsing, commenting and most of all for any purchases. Debbie Portwood :D...................................Narcissus /nɑrˈsɪsəs/ is a genus of mainly hardy, mostly spring-flowering, bulbous perennials in the Amaryllis family, subfamily Amaryllidoideae. Various common names including daffodil, narcissus, and jonquil are used to describe all or some of the genus. They are native to meadows and woods in Europe, North Africa, and West Asia, with a center of distribution in the Western Mediterranean. The number of distinct species varies widely depending on how they are classified, with the disparity due to similarity between species and hybridization between species. The number of defined species has ranged widely depending on the authority. Species and hybrids are widely used in gardens and landscapes..............The Narcissi are perennial herbaceous geophytes which grow from pale brown-skinned spherical bulbs with pronounced necks, and reach heights varying from 5–80 cm depending on species. Dwarf forms include N. asturiensis which reaches 5–8 cm, while N. italicus may grow as high as 80 cm.
Stems The leafless stems, appearing from early to late spring depending on the species, bear from 1 to 20 blooms. Stem shape depends on the species, some are highly compressed with a visible seam, while others are rounded. The stems are upright and located at the centre of the leaves. It is hollow in the upper portion but towards the bulb is more solid and filled with a spongy material. In a few species such as N. hedraeanthus the stem is oblique.
Flowers Narcissi flowers are hermaphrodite and tripartite. Like many monocotyledons, the perianth (perigonium) is homochlamydeous, that is undifferentiated into separate calyx (sepals) and corolla (petals), but rather has six tepals. In all Narcissus species except N. cavanillesii the perianth consists of three main parts a proximal floral tube, formed by fusion of basal segments of the tepals, free tepals, which are reflexed from the perianth, and a distal corona. The transition point between the floral tube and corona is marked by insertion of the free tepals on the fused perianth. While the perianth may point forwards, in some species such as N. cyclamineus it is folded back (reflexed), while in some species such as N. bulbocodium, it is reduced to a few barely visible pointed segments with a prominent corona. The most striking feature of Narcissi flowers is the corona (trumpet) formed during floral development from stamens which fuse into a tubular structure, and the anthers reduced. At the base of the corona the fragrances which attract pollinators are formed. All species produce nectar at the top of the ovary. In Narcissus the corona (paraperigonium) is a tubular outgrowth, developing from the perianth and situated above the floral tube. The floral tube is formed by the fusion of the six tepal bases to create a narrow cylindrical to funnelform perianth. Flowers are generally showy and some are fragrant. Flower colour ranges from white to pale or deep yellow, although N. viridiflorus is green and night flowering. Flower diameter varies from 12 to 125 mm., and may be solitary such as the Bulbocodii and most Pseudonarcissi, or on racemose inflorescences which appear umbellate, with up to 15 or 20 flowers such as N. papyraceus and N. tazetta. The flowers are notable for their striking corona, a cylindrical central cone which may be bell-, bowl-, or disc-shaped extending beyond the tepals, and their floral tube The corona is surrounded by a ring of six floral leaves called the perianth which is united into a tube at the forward edge of the 3-locular ovary. The three outer tepal segments are sepals, and the three inner segments are petals. Coronal morphology varies from the tiny pigmented disk of N. serotinus or the rudimentary structure in N. cavanillesii to the elongated trumpets of the Pseudonarcissi (trumpet daffodils). Floral tubes can range from long and narrow in the Apodanthi and Jonquillae to rudimentary (N. cavanillesii). The other major variable is flower orientation which may be pendant (N. triandrus, N. alpestris) horizontal (N. gaditanus, N. poeticus) or erect (N. cavanillesii, N. serotinus). Narcissi demonstrate exceptional floral diversity (and sexual polymorphism), primarily by corona size and floral (corolla) tube length, associated with pollinator groups (see for instance Figs. 1 and 2 in Graham and Barrett[6]). Barrett and Harder (2005) describe a number of different floral patterns. The predominant patterns they name the 'daffodil' and 'paperwhite' forms. A less common form is the 'triandrus' seen in only two species, N. albimarginatus and N. triandrus. Each form corresponds to a different group of pollinators (See Pollination).......................The daffodil form which includes Pseudonarcissi and Bulbocodii has a relatively short, broad or highly funnelform tube which grades into an elongate corona, which is large and funnelform (funnel-like), forming a broad, cylindrical or trumpet-shaped perianth...............The paperwhite form including Jonquillae, Apodanthi, and Narcissus has a relatively long, narrow tube and a short, shallow, flaring corona. The flower is horizontal and fragrant...........The triandrus form combines features of both the daffodil and paperwhite forms with a well-developed long, narrow tube and an extended bell-shaped corona of almost equal length. This occurs only in N. albimarginatus a Moroccan endemic, and N. triandrus. The flowers are pendant. Androecium and Gynoecium ...........There are six stamens. The ovary is inferior and there is a pistil with a three lobed stigma and style.........................Leaves - The leaves are linear to strap shaped. The emerging plant generally has two leaves, but the mature plant usually three, rarely four in number, and they are covered with a cutin containing cuticle, giving them a waxy appearance. Leaf colour is light green to blue-green. In the mature plant the leaves extend higher than the flower stem, but in some species the leaves are low hanging. The leaf base is encased in a colourless sheath. After flowering the leaves turn yellow and die back once the seed pod is ripe.............................Fruit - The fruit consists of loculicidalcapsules containing numerous seeds which are black, round and swollen with a hard coat. Most species have 12 ovules and 36 seeds, although some species such as N. bulbocodium have more up to a maximum of 60. Seeds take five to six weeks to mature. The seeds of Jonquillae and Bulbocodium are wedge-shaped and matte black, while those of other sections are ovate and glossy black. The seeds are dispersed by wind or by animals, a gust of wind or contact with a passing animal being sufficient to release mature seeds.....................Bulbs - The bulbs have a corky base plate from which arise the root hairs in a ring around the edge, which grow up to 40 cm in length. Once the leaves die back in summer, the roots also wither. After some years the roots shorten pulling the bulbs deeper into the ground (contractile roots). The bulbs develop from the inside pushing the older layers outwards, becoming brown and dry, forming an outer shell. Up to 60 layers have been counted in some wild species. The flower stalk which will start to grow in the following spring, develops within the bulb surrounded by two to three deciduous leaves and their sheaths. The flower stem lies in the axil of the second true leaf.

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October 5th, 2014

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