Fascicularia Explained

Fascicularia is a monotypic genus of flowering plants in the pineapple family Bromeliaceae, subfamily Bromelioideae. The genus name is from the Latin fasciculus (bundle) and arius (pertaining to).^[1]

Only one species is known, Fascicularia bicolor. It is endemic to Chile^[2] and reportedly naturalized in France and the extreme south and west of Great Britain.^[3] In the wild, all Fascicularias are saxicolous (growing on rocks) or epiphytes.^{[4] [5]}

It is cultivated in gardens for the dramatic bright crimson colour of its leaves contrasting with the blue inflorescence.^[6]

The edible fruits are similar to those of the species Greigia sphacelata, but smaller; They are consumed in the same way as these.^[7]

Subspecies

Two subspecies are recognized:

• Fascicularia bicolor subsp. bicolor
• Fascicularia bicolor subsp. canaliculata E.C.Nelson & Zizka

See also

• Ochagavia litoralis
• Greigia sphacelata

External links

• BSI Genera Gallery photos
• http://fcbs.org/pictures/Fascicularia.htm

Notes and References

1. Web site: Bromeliad Info - Genera Etymology . 2009-10-18 . https://web.archive.org/web/20070203011214/http://www.bsi.org/brom_info/genera.html . 2007-02-03 . dead .
2. http://apps.kew.org/wcsp/namedetail.do?name_id=245006 Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
3. Web site: BSBI Maps . Fascicularia distribution map . 18 August 2020 .
4. Zizka . G . Horres . R . Nelson . C . Weising . K . 1999 . Revision of the genus Fascicularia Mez (Bromeliaceae) . Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society . 129 . 4 . 315–332 . 10.1111/j.1095-8339.1999.tb00507.x . 30 May 2022.
5. Ortega-Solis . G . Díaz . I . Mellado-Mansilla . D . Moreno-González . R . Godoy . J . Samaniego . H . 2020 . The importance of tree species and size for the epiphytic bromeliad Fascicularia bicolor in a South-American temperate rainforest (Chile) . IForest - Biogeosciences and Forestry . 13 . 2 . 92–97 . 10.3832/ifor2710-013 . 214699975 . 30 May 2022.
6. Web site: Fascicularia bicolor, Crimson bromeliad . Royal Horticultural Society . 18 August 2020.
7. Pfanzelt . Simon . García . Carolina. Marticorena . Alicia . 2013 . Notes on the Chilean geographic distribution of several vascular plant species . Check List . 9 . 4 . 832–837 . 10.15560/9.4.832 . free . 4 June 2023.