Asphodeline lutea

"King's spear" redirects here. For other plants in the Asphodeline genus, see Asphodeline.

Asphodeline lutea (king's spear, yellow asphodel) is a perennial plant native to southeastern Europe, northern Africa, the Caucasus and the Levant.^[1] It is grown as a landscaping plant.^[2]

Asphodeline lutea
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Monocots
Order:	Asparagales
Family:	Asphodelaceae
Subfamily:	Asphodeloideae
Genus:	Asphodeline
Species:	A. lutea
Binomial name
Asphodeline lutea (L.) Rchb.[1]
Synonyms[1]
Asphodelus luteus L.

Asphodeline lutea, habitus

Asphodeline lutea - MHNT

It has been associated with the Asphodel of the Ancient Greek underworld,^[3] but so has the closely related Asphodelus ramosus.

Description

Asphodeline lutea reaches 3 to 4 ft (0.9 to 1.2 m) tall and 1 to 2 ft (0.3 to 0.6 m) wide. The grey-green leaves are 1 ft (0.3 m) tall, with the flower stalk growing 3 to 4 ft (0.9 to 1.2 m) bearing a dense raceme of 1 in (2.5 cm) bright yellow flowers.^[2]

History

Asphodeline lutea was introduced into the University of Oxford Botanic Garden in 1648, even though it demonstrated no known uses that are typical of a physic garden (plants grown for medicinal use). One of the curators of the garden at the time, John Parkinson, said the plant was "not... used in Physicke for any purpose." The locals in the Mediterranean who were interviewed by Parkinson said that that plant had "no... propertie appropriate unto it but knavery," with no explanation of the particular knavery of which the plant was guilty. The description in the Botanic Garden used the old name of Asphodelus lutea.^[4]