Consolida
Encyclopedia
Consolida is a genus
of about 40 species
of annual flowering plant
s in the buttercup family Ranunculaceae
, native from western Europe
through the Mediterranean region east to central Asia
. The common name, Larkspur, is shared with the closely related genus Delphinium
.
Consolida differs from Delphinium in the flower
structure, with the flowers in an open, loose, often branched spike, rather than the dense column of flowers found in Delphinium, and in the fruit
, which comprises a single follicle, instead of a cluster of several together. Also unlike most Delphinium species, all Consolida species are annual.
Western variants of the plant are poisonous to cattle, and cattle ranchers are very careful to avoid grazing their cattle near the plant. A common cowboy adage to that effect is that " if you rode the range all day, and were tired of ridin', eat a fistful of larkspur, and you won't be tired anymore."
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
of about 40 species
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
of annual flowering plant
Flowering plant
The flowering plants , also known as Angiospermae or Magnoliophyta, are the most diverse group of land plants. Angiosperms are seed-producing plants like the gymnosperms and can be distinguished from the gymnosperms by a series of synapomorphies...
s in the buttercup family Ranunculaceae
Ranunculaceae
Ranunculaceae are a family of about 1700 species of flowering plants in about 60 genera, distributed worldwide....
, native from western Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
through the Mediterranean region east to central Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
. The common name, Larkspur, is shared with the closely related genus Delphinium
Delphinium
Delphinium is a genus of about 300 species of perennial flowering plants in the buttercup family Ranunculaceae, native throughout the Northern Hemisphere and also on the high mountains of tropical Africa. The common name, larkspur, is shared with the closely related genus Consolida...
.
Consolida differs from Delphinium in the flower
Flower
A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants . The biological function of a flower is to effect reproduction, usually by providing a mechanism for the union of sperm with eggs...
structure, with the flowers in an open, loose, often branched spike, rather than the dense column of flowers found in Delphinium, and in the fruit
Fruit
In broad terms, a fruit is a structure of a plant that contains its seeds.The term has different meanings dependent on context. In non-technical usage, such as food preparation, fruit normally means the fleshy seed-associated structures of certain plants that are sweet and edible in the raw state,...
, which comprises a single follicle, instead of a cluster of several together. Also unlike most Delphinium species, all Consolida species are annual.
Species
- Consolida aconiti
- Consolida ajacis (= Consolida ambigua) - Larkspur
- Consolida anthoroidea
- Consolida armeniacaConsolida armeniacaConsolida armeniaca is an annual flowering plant of the family Ranunculaceae....
- Consolida axilliflora
- Consolida cornuta
- Consolida cruciata
- Consolida glandulosa
- Consolida hellespontica
- Consolida hohenackeri
- Consolida lineolata
- Consolida oliveriana
- Consolida olopetala
- Consolida orientalis - Eastern Larkspur
- Consolida persica
- Consolida phrygia
- Consolida raveyi
- Consolida regalis - Forking Larkspur
- Consolida saccata
- Consolida scleroclada
- Consolida staminosa
- Consolida stapfiana
- Consolida stenocarpa
- Consolida sulphurea
- Consolida thirkeana
- Consolida tomentosa
Western variants of the plant are poisonous to cattle, and cattle ranchers are very careful to avoid grazing their cattle near the plant. A common cowboy adage to that effect is that " if you rode the range all day, and were tired of ridin', eat a fistful of larkspur, and you won't be tired anymore."