The genus Lycoris Herb. belongs to the Amaryllidaceae family, which consists of about 20 species and is distributed in warm temperate to subtropical zones of East Asia, from southwestern China to Japan and southern Korea, with a few zones extending to northern Indochina and Nepal. The species is easy to hybridize with each other, and more than half of the currently recognized taxa are certainly of hybrid origin (Hsu et al. 1994; Ji and Meerow 2000; Tsi and Meerow 2000). In recent years, with the in-depth development of field investigation and taxonomic research, many new species have been published successively. Up to now, more than 30 species have been named legally, of which more than 20 are endemic to China (Li et al. 2022; Lu et al. 2020; Meng et al. 2018; Quan et al. 2013; Zhang et al. 2021). Lycoris has its specific traits and benefits. When they bloom from summer to fall, when others are not active, the stems are leafless, with an inflorescence at the top containing four to eight flowers. These flowers are characterized by their pastel, plentiful colors, and multiple flower shapes (Hsu et al. 1994). Because of the special flower shape and biological habit, they have common names such as spider lily, surprise lily, hurricane lily, and magic lily. Moreover, the bulbs of Lycoris have been used in traditional Chinese medicine, as some Amaryllidaceae alkaloids isolated from the bulbs of Lycoris have been reported to exhibit immunostimulatory, antitumor, antiviral, and antimalarial activity (Wang et al. 2013). With an increasing demand for Lycoris as a commercial horticultural product, the breeding of different varieties with new petal forms and/or colors has become a valued necessity for Lycoris (Yang et al. 2021). This new cultivar is a natural hybrid population between Lycoris radiata and Lycoris aurea, which has a unique red-pink color, taller stem, and bigger flower, making it more beautiful and suitable for landscaping and cut flowers.
Origin
In the wild, interspecific hybridization events and subsequent polyploidization were considered to be the primary driving force for speciation in genus Lycoris (Kurita and Hsu 1996). More than half of the species identified are natural hybridization populations. Hybrid progeny inherited certain morphological traits from their parents and sometimes created their own unique ornamental traits. Hangzhou Botanical Garden, the first National Flower Germplasm Resource Bank of Lycoris, has been engaged in germplasm collection and breeding for more than 50 years and is one of the most germplasm-conserving institutions in the world. Our breeding goal is to create new varieties that do not exist. Lycoris radiata and L. aurea (Fig. 1A) are abundant in central and southwestern China. As a result of the same flowering period and mixed growth, these two species are easy to hybridize and they form many types of progenies, some of which have specific traits with high ornamental value, such as unique flower colors, different shapes, and excellent growth characteristics and resistance. The new cultivar, Lycoris ‘Tao Hong’, is an individual selected from natural hybrid population between L. radiata (2n = 22) and L. aurea (2n = 16). We also checked the chromosome karyotype (2n = 19), which supports our hypothesis. Its flower has a unique red-pink color; moreover, the stem is taller and the flower is bigger than L. aurea, which makes it more beautiful and suitable for landscaping and cut flowers. The bulbs were reproduced asexually through bulb cutting and distinctness, uniformity, and stability tests were conducted. We named it ‘Tao Hong’ to describe its color trait of petals and registered it with the Royal General Bulb Growers’ Association in 2017.
Flower characteristic of Lycoris aurea (A) and the cultivar Lycoris ‘Tao Hong’ (B).
Citation: HortScience 58, 8; 10.21273/HORTSCI17217-23
Description
The bulb is ovoid with a brown tunic and is ≈4 to 5 cm in diameter (similar to L. aurea). Leaves come out immediately after flowering in the fall, and are narrow ensiform and ≈60 × 0.9 to 1.8 cm. In early September, the stem is drawn from the ground and grows ≈70 cm tall. Each umbel has eight to nine flowers, and the buds are red-pink. It has classic spidery flowers, with a perianth tube of 1.1 to 1.4 cm. The margins of the petals are strongly undulate and are 5.5 × 0.9 cm. The tips of the petals are strongly recurved. The perianth lobes are red-pink (RHS Color Chart 49A, 2007 edition) with a yellow midrib on the ventral surface (Fig. 1B). The stamens are yellow and 2-fold longer than the perianth, and the stigma is deep rose red at the apex. Because of its hybrid origin, it is sterile.
Propagation, Cultivation, and Application
Lycoris ‘Tao Hong’ is sterile and has no virtual seed, so it can only be propagated by asexual methods, such as bulb cutting and tissue culture, which can produce bulblets rapidly with stable ornamental traits. To avoid rotting after cutting, the dry and warm early summer is the ideal seasons for dividing and differentiation, when the leaves are dormant (Cai et al. 2019). Tissue culture is more efficient, but its costs are high and it requires special facilities.
Lycoris is native to eastern Asia, primarily in China, where the warm, humid climate is perfect for growth. The species of fall foliage type are generally less hardy than spring foliage type. Therefore, Lycoris ‘Tao Hong’ is suitable for planting south of the Yangtze River. It grows better under full-light conditions, especially during leaf time, and proper shade can delay flowering and slightly improve flowering quality, so it is suitable for planting in deciduous broadleaf forests (Liu et al. 2012). It is well adapted to different soil conditions and grows better in loam or sandy loam rich in organic matter. Although it has not been grown and used widely, its beautiful flower and simple cultivation make it a promising bulb. It can be used as forest-edge groundcover and in summer and autumn flower border. In addition, it is an ideal material for cut flowers.
Availability
Lycoris ‘Tao Hong’ is available through Hangzhou Botanical Garden. Contact Pengchong Zhang (e-mail: zhang-pengchong@163.com) for inquiries.
References Cited
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