Diascia (plant)

Diascia
Diascia aliciae
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
(unranked):	Angiosperms
(unranked):	Eudicots
(unranked):	Asterids
Order:	Lamiales
Family:	Scrophulariaceae
Genus:	Diascia Link & Otto
Species
Many (see text)

Diascia is a genus of around 70 species^[1] of annual and perennial flowering herbs of the Scrophulariaceae family,^[2] native to southern Africa, including South Africa, Lesotho and neighbouring areas.

The perennial species are found mainly in summer-rainfall areas such as the KwaZulu-Natal Drakensberg; about 50 species, mostly annuals, are found in the Western Cape and Namaqualand, winter rainfall areas.

Their common name is twinspur, in reference to the two (usually downward-pointing) spurs to be found on the back of the flower. These help to distinguish them from the similar (and closely related) genera Alonsoa and Nemesia. The spurs contain a special oil, which is collected in the wild by certain species of bees that appear to have coevolved with the plants, as they have unusually long forelegs for collecting the oil. ^[3][4]

In gardens, diascia cultivars (mostly hybrids) have become extremely popular as colourful, floriferous, easily grown bedding plants in recent years.^[5]

Etymology

A raceme of Diascia LITTLE TANGO, a hybrid cultivar. The spurs on the back of the corolla can be seen

Surprisingly, the generic name (from the Greek di = two and askos = bag, pouch or sack) does not refer to the spurs, but to the two translucent sacs, or pouches, known as 'windows', found in the upper part of the corolla of the original type specimen, Diascia bergiana. Diascia species in the section Racemosae have similar windows, but in some species they merge into one. The windows may help oil-collecting bees to find the correct position within the corolla when gathering oil from the glands within the spurs.^[6]

Description

Most diascia species are short-growing, straggling plants, reaching no more than 30–45 cm in height, although Diascia rigescens can reach 60 cm, and the rather similar D. personata (with which it is often confused)^[7] up to 120 cm or so. Some diascias spread by means of stolons, others produce multiple lax stems from a single crown. The flowers are borne in loose terminal racemes. The corolla is five-lobed, and normally pink or rose coloured in the perennial species most commonly seen in cultivation. Dark purplish patches of oil glands may make the flowers of some species appear bicoloured.

Species

Coevolution with Rediviva bees

The two spurs found on the back of a diascia flower (from which it gets the common name twinspur) contain a special oil, which is collected in the wild by at least 8 species of bees of the genus Rediviva. The bees appear to have coevolved with the plants, as the females have developed unusually long, hairy forelegs with which they collect the oil from diascia spurs to feed their larvae (and sometimes to line their nests with).^[9] The spurs vary in average length from 5.3mm to as much as 13.9mm, mainly between species (although those of D. capsularis can vary widely between populations); the bees' forelegs vary similarly. ^[3] The spurs of Diascia longicornis are about 25mm in length, but the existence of a suitably equipped pollinator, Rediviva emdeorum, with forelegs of the same length, was only confirmed in the 1980s. Rediviva longimanus has also been observed pollinating D. longicornis in the Western Cape.^[10]

Rediviva neliana, a widespread species, collects from at least 12 species of Diascia, but in general, few different diascia species grow together in the same locality. As a result, local populations of R. neliana have been found to differ from each other, as each has developed legs that match the spur length of the diascias that are available to them in that locality. This indicates that local populations of R. neliana are coevolving with the flowers on which they depend.^[3]

Garden uses

Diascias have become extremely popular worldwide as bedding plants, suitable for hanging baskets, window boxes and other containers, as well as rockeries and the fronts of herbaceous borders. This explosion of interest is largely thanks to the breeding work done by the late Hector Harrison of Appleby, North Lincolnshire, England. From 1985 he raised hundreds of hybrid seedlings, from which several excellent cultivars have been selected and named. He increased the colour range to include shades of apricot, pink, coral, lilac, red and white. Other nurseries and breeders have continued to build on his pioneering work.^[5]

Several species and cultivars have been given the Award of Garden Merit by the British Royal Horticultural Society. The AGM includes a hardiness rating: most have been rated as intermediate between H3 (hardy outside in some regions or particular situations or which, while usually grown outside in summer, needs frost-free protection in winter – e.g. dahlias) and H4 (hardy throughout the British Isles).^[11][12]

Species

Among the species most commonly grown in gardens are:^[12]

• Diascia fetcaniensis
• D. integerrima AGM H3–4
• D. rigescens AGM H3
• D. vigilis AGM H3

Cultivars

The cultivars commonly grown in gardens include:^[12]

Diascia CORAL BELLE, a hybrid cultivar, is commonly used for summer bedding

Diascia CORAL BELLE

Diascia Whisper Series WHISPER CRANBERRY

• 'Appleby Apricot'
• Diascia barberae 'Belmore Beauty'

'Blackthorn Apricot' AGM H3–4

'Fisher's Flora'

'Ruby Field' AGM H3–4

• BLUE BONNET
• CORAL BELLE AGM H3–4
• Flying Colours Series

FLYING COLOURS APPLEBLOSSOM, FLYING COLOURS APRICOT, FLYING COLOURS CORAL, FLYING COLOURS RED

• ICE CRACKER
• ICE CREAM
• 'Jacqueline's Joy'
• 'Joyce's Choice' AGM H3–4
• 'Katherine Sharman'
• 'Lady Valerie' AGM H3–4
• 'Lilac Belle' AGM H3–4
• 'Lilac Mist' AGM H3–4
• LITTLE DANCER
• LITTLE TANGO
• PINK PANTHER
• RED ACE
• REDSTART
• 'Rupert Lambert' AGM H3–4
• 'Salmon Supreme'
• 'Twinkle'
• Whisper Series

WHISPER APRICOT IMPROVED, WHISPER CRANBERRY RED, WHISPER PUMPKIN, WHISPER TANGERINE, WHISPER WHITE

• Wink Series

WINK GARNET

References

• Kew list of Scrophulariaceae
• Horticulture Week article by Graham Clarke
• Plantzafrica Diascia integerrima
• Plantzafrica Diascia rigescens
• A UK National Plant Collection holder's website