Hyacinthoides non-scripta

Hyacinthoides non-scripta /ˌhaɪəsɪnˈθɔɪdiːz nɒnˈskrɪptə/ (formerly Endymion non-scriptus or Scilla non-scripta) is a bulbous perennial plant found in Atlantic areas from the north-western part of the Iberian Peninsula to the British Isles, and also frequently used as a garden plant. It is known in English as the common bluebell or simply bluebell, a name which is used in Scotland to refer to the harebell, Campanula rotundifolia. In spring, H. non-scripta produces a nodding, one-sided inflorescence of 5–12 tubular, sweet-scented violet–blue flowers, with strongly recurved tepals, and 3–6 long, linear, basal leaves.

H. non-scripta is particularly associated with ancient woodland where it may dominate the understorey to produce carpets of violet–blue flowers in "bluebell woods", but also occurs in more open habitats in western regions. It is protected under UK law, and in some other parts of its range. A related species, H. hispanica has also been introduced to Britain and Ireland and hybridises with H. non-scripta to produce intermediates known as H. × massartiana.

Hyacinthoides non-scripta was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1753 work Species Plantarum, as a species in the genus Hyacinthus. The specific epithet non-scripta means "unlettered" or "unmarked" and was intended to distinguish this plant from the classical hyacinth of Greek mythology. This mythical flower, which was almost certainly not the modern hyacinth, sprang up from the blood of the dying prince Hyacinthus. His lover, the god Apollo, shed tears that marked the new flower's petals with the letters "AIAI" ("alas") as a sign of his grief.

In 1803, Johann Centurius von Hoffmannsegg and Johann Heinrich Friedrich Link transferred the species to the genus Scilla, and in 1849 Christian August Friedrich Garcke transferred it to the genus Endymion (now a synonym of Hyacinthoides); it is still widely known as "Scilla non-scripta" or "Endymion non-scriptus". In 1934, Pierre Chouard transferred the species to its current placement in the genus Hyacinthoides. Scilla was the original Greek name for the sea squill, Drimia maritima; Endymion is a character from Greek mythology; Hyacinthoides means "like a hyacinth".

The type species of Hyacinthoides is H. hispanica, while that of Endymion is "Scilla nutans", described by James Edward Smith in English Botany in 1797, but now treated as a synonym of H. non-scripta. Smith had argued that nutans ("nodding") is a more fitting epithet than non-scriptus, which makes no sense once separated from Hyacinthus, but the International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants requires the oldest name to be used, regardless of meaning.

Common names for Hyacinthoides non-scripta include bluebell, common bluebell, English bluebell, British bluebell, wild hyacinth, wood bell, fairy flower and bell bottle. In Scotland, the term "bluebell" is used for the harebell, Campanula rotundifolia.

Hyacinthoides non-scripta forms a clade with three other species – H. hispanica, H. paivae and H. cedretorum – centred on the Iberian Peninsula. H. paivae is restricted to a small area of north-western Iberia (Galicia and neighbouring parts of Portugal), while H. cedretorum is found in mountainous areas of western North Africa (Morocco and Algeria). Within Iberia, H. non-scripta and H. hispanica are geographically separated by the river Duero. The genus also contains seven further species, mostly distributed further east in the Mediterranean Basin.

Hyacinthoides non-scripta is a perennial plant that grows from a bulb. It produces 3–6 linear leaves, all growing from the base of the plant, and each 7–16 millimetres (0.28–0.63 in) wide. An inflorescence of 5–12 (exceptionally 3–32) flowers is borne on a stem up to 500 mm (20 in) tall, which droops towards the tip; the flowers are arranged in a 1-sided nodding raceme. Each flower is 14–20 mm (0.55–0.79 in) long, with two bracts at the base, and the six tepals are strongly recurved at their tips. The tepals are violet–blue. The three stamens in the outer whorl are fused to the perianth for more than 75% of their length, and bear cream-coloured pollen. The flowers are strongly and sweetly scented. The seeds are black, and germinate on the soil surface.