Gypsophila
Encyclopedia
Gypsophila—commonly known as baby's-breath in the United States
and Canada
, "soap wort" in the United Kingdom, elsewhere Gypsophila—is a genus
of about 100 species of flowering plant
s in the family Caryophyllaceae
, native to Europe
, Asia
and north Africa
. Many species are found on calcium
-rich soils, including gypsum
, hence the name of the genus. Some species are also sometimes called "baby's breath" or simply, "Gyp", among the floral industry. Its botanical name means "lover of chalk", which is accurate in describing the type of soil in which this plant grows.
They are herbaceous
annual
and perennial plant
s growing to 5–120 cm tall. The leaves
are opposite, linear to narrow triangular, often falcate (sickle-shaped), 1–7 cm long and 2–8 mm broad. The flower
s are produced in large inflorescence
s, which may be either dense or open and lax; each flower is small, 3–10 mm diameter, with five white or pink petals.
Selected species
s in gardens; they are grown both as garden plants and also valuable as a cut flower in floristry
to add as a filler to flower bouquets. The most commonly encountered in gardens are G. paniculata (a perennial species), G. elegans, and G. muralis (both annual species). They are easily propagated from seed
, by cuttings, or by root division before growth starts in the spring. Starting as a tiny seed, the annuals and perennials germinate in ten to fifteen days, and can grow rapidly up to 50 cm in height. While they prefer full sun, along with rich, light soil
, deficiencies in poor soil constitution can be overcome by adding a general purpose fertilizer
, as long as it is well drained.
In the United States, it is common for young girls, particularly children attending weddings, to have their hair decorated with Baby's Breath.
Gypsophila paniculata has become an invasive species
in parts of North America
.
Gypsophila rokejeka is used to provide saponins in the production of halva
Gypsophila species are used as food plants by the larva
e of some Lepidoptera
species including three case-bearers of the genus Coleophora
which feed on G. fastigiata: C. kyffhusana, C. niveistrigella (both of which feed exclusively on the plant) and C. vicinella.
The root of the Gypsophila repens is used to make the whip cream topping of the Turkish dessert kerebic. Boiling the root over a period of hours produces white bubbles which are collected, mixed with sugar, and mixed until it thickens to a cream.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, "soap wort" in the United Kingdom, elsewhere Gypsophila—is a genus
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 100 species of 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 family Caryophyllaceae
Caryophyllaceae
The Caryophyllaceae, commonly called the pink family or carnation family, is a family of flowering plants. It is included in the dicotyledon order Caryophyllales in the APG III system, alongside 33 other families, including Amaranthaceae, Cactaceae and Polygonaceae...
, native to 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...
, 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...
and north Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
. Many species are found on calcium
Calcium
Calcium is the chemical element with the symbol Ca and atomic number 20. It has an atomic mass of 40.078 amu. Calcium is a soft gray alkaline earth metal, and is the fifth-most-abundant element by mass in the Earth's crust...
-rich soils, including gypsum
Gypsum
Gypsum is a very soft sulfate mineral composed of calcium sulfate dihydrate, with the chemical formula CaSO4·2H2O. It is found in alabaster, a decorative stone used in Ancient Egypt. It is the second softest mineral on the Mohs Hardness Scale...
, hence the name of the genus. Some species are also sometimes called "baby's breath" or simply, "Gyp", among the floral industry. Its botanical name means "lover of chalk", which is accurate in describing the type of soil in which this plant grows.
They are herbaceous
Herbaceous
A herbaceous plant is a plant that has leaves and stems that die down at the end of the growing season to the soil level. They have no persistent woody stem above ground...
annual
Annual plant
An annual plant is a plant that usually germinates, flowers, and dies in a year or season. True annuals will only live longer than a year if they are prevented from setting seed...
and perennial plant
Perennial plant
A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives for more than two years. The term is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter lived annuals and biennials. The term is sometimes misused by commercial gardeners or horticulturalists to describe only herbaceous perennials...
s growing to 5–120 cm tall. The leaves
Leaf
A leaf is an organ of a vascular plant, as defined in botanical terms, and in particular in plant morphology. Foliage is a mass noun that refers to leaves as a feature of plants....
are opposite, linear to narrow triangular, often falcate (sickle-shaped), 1–7 cm long and 2–8 mm broad. 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...
s are produced in large inflorescence
Inflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Strictly, it is the part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed and which is accordingly modified...
s, which may be either dense or open and lax; each flower is small, 3–10 mm diameter, with five white or pink petals.
Selected species
- Gypsophila acutifolia - Sharp-leaved Gypsophila
- Gypsophila altissima
- Gypsophila aretioides
- Gypsophila arrostii
- Gypsophila bicolor
- Gypsophila bungeana - Bunge's Gypsophila
- Gypsophila capituliflora
- Gypsophila cephalotes
- Gypsophila cerastioides
- Gypsophila davurica
- Gypsophila desertorum
- Gypsophila elegansGypsophila elegansGypsophila elegans is an ornamental plant native to Asia and Europe....
- Gypsophila fastigiata - Fastigiate Gypsophila
- Gypsophila huashanensis
- Gypsophila licentiana
- Gypsophila muralis - Annual Gypsophila
- Gypsophila nana - Dwarf Gypsophila
- Gypsophila oldhamiana
- Gypsophila pacifica
- Gypsophila paniculataGypsophila paniculataGypsophila paniculata, commonly known as Baby's-breath, is a cultivated ornamental garden plant in the Caryophyllaceae family, popular in the florist trade to provide a background for more colourful flowers....
- Common Gypsophila - Gypsophila patrinii
- Gypsophila perfoliata - Perfoliate Gypsophila
- Gypsophila petraeaGypsophila petraeaGypsophila petraea is a species of the genus Gypsophila in the plant family Caryophyllaceae. Endemism for Eastern Carpathians and Southern Carpathians, Romania....
- Gypsophila pilosa - Turkish Baby's Breath
- Gypsophila rokejeka - Soap root
- Gypsophila repensGypsophila repensGypsophila repens is a perennial plant of the genus Gypsophila. It can grow around 20 cm tall and has white, lilac or light purple flowers....
- Alpine Gypsophila - Gypsophila scorzonerifolia - Glandular Gypsophila
- Gypsophila sericea
- Gypsophila spinosaGypsophila spinosaGypsophila spinosa is a plant species in the genus Gypsophila....
- Gypsophila tenuifolia
- Gypsophila tschiliensis
Cultivation and uses
Gypsophilas are often grown as ornamental plantOrnamental plant
Ornamental plants are plants that are grown for decorative purposes in gardens and landscape design projects, as house plants, for cut flowers and specimen display...
s in gardens; they are grown both as garden plants and also valuable as a cut flower in floristry
Floristry
Floristry is the general term used to describe production, commerce and trade in flowers. It encompasses flower care and handling, floral design or flower arranging, merchandising, and display and flower delivery. Wholesale florists sell bulk flowers and related supplies to professionals in the trade...
to add as a filler to flower bouquets. The most commonly encountered in gardens are G. paniculata (a perennial species), G. elegans, and G. muralis (both annual species). They are easily propagated from seed
Seed
A seed is a small embryonic plant enclosed in a covering called the seed coat, usually with some stored food. It is the product of the ripened ovule of gymnosperm and angiosperm plants which occurs after fertilization and some growth within the mother plant...
, by cuttings, or by root division before growth starts in the spring. Starting as a tiny seed, the annuals and perennials germinate in ten to fifteen days, and can grow rapidly up to 50 cm in height. While they prefer full sun, along with rich, light soil
Soil
Soil is a natural body consisting of layers of mineral constituents of variable thicknesses, which differ from the parent materials in their morphological, physical, chemical, and mineralogical characteristics...
, deficiencies in poor soil constitution can be overcome by adding a general purpose fertilizer
Fertilizer
Fertilizer is any organic or inorganic material of natural or synthetic origin that is added to a soil to supply one or more plant nutrients essential to the growth of plants. A recent assessment found that about 40 to 60% of crop yields are attributable to commercial fertilizer use...
, as long as it is well drained.
In the United States, it is common for young girls, particularly children attending weddings, to have their hair decorated with Baby's Breath.
Gypsophila paniculata has become an invasive species
Invasive species
"Invasive species", or invasive exotics, is a nomenclature term and categorization phrase used for flora and fauna, and for specific restoration-preservation processes in native habitats, with several definitions....
in parts of North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
.
Gypsophila rokejeka is used to provide saponins in the production of halva
Halva
Halva refers to many types of dense, sweet confections, served across the Middle East, South Asia, Central Asia, West Asia, North Africa, the Horn of Africa, the Balkans, Eastern Europe, Malta and the Jewish world.The term halva ,...
Gypsophila species are used as food plants by the larva
Larva
A larva is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle...
e of some Lepidoptera
Lepidoptera
Lepidoptera is a large order of insects that includes moths and butterflies . It is one of the most widespread and widely recognizable insect orders in the world, encompassing moths and the three superfamilies of butterflies, skipper butterflies, and moth-butterflies...
species including three case-bearers of the genus Coleophora
Coleophora
Coleophora is a very large genus of moths of the family Coleophoridae. It contains some 1,350 described species. The genus is represented on all continents, but the majority are found in the Nearctic and Palaearctic regions...
which feed on G. fastigiata: C. kyffhusana, C. niveistrigella (both of which feed exclusively on the plant) and C. vicinella.
The root of the Gypsophila repens is used to make the whip cream topping of the Turkish dessert kerebic. Boiling the root over a period of hours produces white bubbles which are collected, mixed with sugar, and mixed until it thickens to a cream.