Hannonia is a genus of plants in the Amaryllis family.Braun-Blanquet, Josias & Maire, René Charles Joseph Ernest. 1931. Bulletin de la Société d'Histoire Naturelle de l'Afrique du Nord. Algiers 22: 104 It contains only one known species, Hannonia hesperidum, endemic to Morocco and confined to Western Morocco, Promontory of Hercules.Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant FamiliesMaire, R. (1960). Flore de l'Afrique du Nord 6: 1-397. Paul Lechevalier, Paris.Plant Biodiversity of South-Western Morocco, Hannonia hesperidum The specific epithet comes from Greek έσπερος, of evening, as the flowers open in the late afternoon.
Description
The bulbs are 20-25x20 mm., with brown papery tunics; they have a long neck about 4 cm long. The species is hysteranthous. Scape about 10 cm high, 2-edged, a little twisted, hollow (according to; solid according to Hannibal, L.S. 1967. A primitive amaryllid - Hannonia hesperidium. Plant Life 23: 143-144.), terete; umbel two-flowered. Outermost leaf reduced to a scarious sheath with a very short blade, inner leaves 2 or 3, linear, fleshy, glaucous, flat, just 2 mm wide and 20 cm long. Spathe bracts two, free, but appressed to the scape below their middle. The pedicel is 1 cm, green; the perianth has a short green tube, 5 mm, much shorter than the tepal segments, spreading in six white tepals, 15 mm long and 2.5 mm wide, linear-lanceolate, a bit broadened below the apex, gradually attenuate (narrowing) towards the base, subequal (nearly equal), keeled green on the abaxial surface, keel formed by 3 closely spaced veins. The stamens are biseriate, free, inserted at the throat, 3 equaling the tepals, 3 shorter; filaments filiform; anthers dorsifixed (attached to the filaments at their middle), oblong, versatile, yellow; style white, filiform, and terete. Stigma captitate, obscurely 3-lobed. Ovary with 3 locules; ovules 5-6 per locule.
Flowering period: late summer. Each flower lasts just one day. No scent. Grows in rock-fissures, a very sandy-gritty soil is needed in cultivation. No water in summer and very little in winter. In areas which experience frost a frost-free bulb frame or a greenhouse have to be used. Full sun.
Taxonomy This genus was placed in tribe Galantheae by Traub on the basis of morphology only; molecular investigations are inconclusive.
The name Hannonia hesperidum var. legionariorum was coined in 1935Emberger, Marie Louis 1935. Bulletin de la Société des Sciences Naturelles du Maroc 15: 175 for a Moroccan plant initially thought to be a variety of Hannonia hesperidum. The name is, however, now considered a synonym of Vagaria ollivieri in the genus Vagaria.Maire, René Charles Joseph Ernest 1936. Bulletin de la Société d'Histoire Naturelle de l'Afrique du Nord 27: 78Dobignard, D. & Chatelain, C. (2010). Index synonymique de la flore d'Afrique du nord 1: 1-455. Éditions des conservatoire et jardin botaniques, Genève
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