Aloes and Lilies of Ethiopia and Eritrea

210 ALLIACEAE
Distribution and
classification
Reproduction
Chemistry and
use
COLCHICACEAE
The family includes erect or twining perennial herbs
with underground corms (which sometimes becomes
rhizomatous). The leaves are basally concentrated
or scattered along the stem with leaf­blade linear to
lanceolate or ovate, sessile or sheathing basally, parallel
veined often with a distinct mid­rib, sometimes ending in
a tendril. The inflorescence is axillary, racemose, cymose
or rarely a solitary flower with or without bracts. The
flowers are showy with 6 equal or sometimes unequal
tepals that are free from each other or fused at the base
for some length. The colour of the perianth varying from
white to purple, red or yellow or brown, more often
two­coloured. The 6 stamens are free or attached to the
petals with rounded or flattened filaments. The ovary is
superior with 3­locules and the fruits are capsules, most
often opening along the walls dividing the ovary into
three rooms (septicidal), more rarely opening between
the separating walls (loculicidal) as in Iphigenia.
The family Colchicaceae is distributed both in the
temperate and tropical regions of the Old World (Africa,
Asia and Australia) with extension to the New World
(Europe & North America). The highest concentration
of the species is in the temperate zones of South Africa.
Globally it is represented by 19 genera and 225 species,
of which, 5 genera and 7 indigenous species are known
to occur in Ethiopia and Eritrea.
The flowers show a clear adaptation to insect pollination.
The presence of nectar, which in this family is produced
in nectaries at the basis of the petals, attract insects. Also
the often conspicuous colour patterns are evidences for
this phenomenon.
Colchicine­like alkaloids are common in many members
of the family. These alkaloids are extremely poisonous
and cause severe damage to livestock. They also have
wide applications in medicine, pharmacological and