View source for User:Solistide/sandbox/Strelitzia

{{taxobox
|image = Strelitzia_larger.jpg
|regnum = [[Plantae]]
|unranked_divisio = [[Angiosperms]]
|unranked_classis = [[Monocots]]
|unranked_ordo = [[Commelinids]]
|ordo = [[Zingiberales]]
|familia = [[Strelitziaceae]]
|genus = '''''Strelitzia'''''
|genus_authority = [[Ait.]]
|subdivision_ranks = Species
|subdivision = [[#Species and hybrids]]
}}
[[File:Strelitzia reginae MHNT.BOT.2009.13.52.jpg|thumb|''Strelitzia reginae'' - [[MHNT]]]]

'''''Strelitzia''''' {{IPAc-en|s|t|r|ɛ|ˈ|l|ɪ|t|s|i|ə}}<ref>''Sunset Western Garden Book,'' 1995:606–607, [[Sunset Books]]</ref> is a genus of five species of [[perennial plant]]s, native to [[South Africa]]. It belongs to the plant family [[Strelitziaceae]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Tropical Flower Guide|url=http://tropicalflowerguide.com/bird-of-paradise-tropical-flowers.html|accessdate=30 November 2012}}</ref> The genus is named after the [[duchy]] of [[Duchy of Mecklenburg-Strelitz|Mecklenburg-Strelitz]], birthplace of [[Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz|Queen Charlotte]] of the [[United Kingdom]]. A [[common name]] of the genus is '''bird of paradise flower / plant''', because of a resemblance of its flowers to the [[Birds of paradise|bird of paradise]]. In South Africa it is commonly known as a '''crane flower''' and is featured on the reverse of the 50 cent coin. It is the Official Flower of the [[Los Angeles, California|City of Los Angeles]]; two of the species, [[Strelitzia nicolai|''Strelitzia nicolai'']] and [[Strelitzia reginae|''Strelitzia reginae'']], are frequently grown as house plants. <ref>{{cite web|title=Our House Plants - Bird of Paradise|url=http://www.ourhouseplants.com/plants/strelitzia|accessdate=18 July 2014}}</ref>

[[File:Spain, autumn 2011 051.jpg|thumb|left|A Strelitzia plant in [[Alicante, Spain]]]]

The species ''S. nicolai'' is the largest in the genus, reaching 10 m tall, with stately white and blue flowers;<ref name=Eliovson>{{cite book|last=Eliovson|first=Sima|title=Shrubs, trees, and climbers|publisher=Macmillan South Africa|year=1981|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=6Yg_AAAAYAAJ&dq=strelitzia+nicolai|accessdate=2009-09-12|isbn=0-86954-011-4}}</ref> the other species typically reach 2 to 3.5 m tall, except ''S. caudata'' which is a tree of a typically smaller size than ''S. nicolai''. The [[leaf|leaves]] are large, 30–200&nbsp;cm long and 10–80&nbsp;cm broad, similar to a [[banana leaf]] in appearance but with a longer [[Petiole (botany)|petiole]], and arranged strictly in two ranks to form a fan-like crown of [[evergreen]] foliage. The [[flower]]s are produced in a horizontal [[inflorescence]] emerging from a stout [[spathe]]. They are [[pollination|pollinated]] by [[sunbird]]s, which use the spathe as a perch when visiting the flowers. The weight of the bird when standing on the spathe opens it to release the [[pollen]] onto the bird's feet, which is then deposited on the next flower it visits.

''Strelitzia'' lack natural insect pollinators; in areas without sunbirds, plants in this genus generally require hand pollination in order to successfully set seed.<ref name=Ogren>{{cite book|last1=Ogren|first1=Thomas|title=The Allergy-Fighting Garden|date=2015|publisher=Ten Speed Press|location=Berkeley, CA|isbn=978-1-60774-491-7|page=200}}</ref>

== Species and hybrids ==
*''[[Strelitzia alba]]'' ([[synonymy|syn.]] ''S. augusta'') – White bird of paradise
*''[[Strelitzia caudata]]'' – Mountain Strelitzia
*''[[Strelitzia nicolai]]'' – White or Giant bird of paradise; Wild banana; Blue-and-white Strelitzia<ref name=Eliovson />
*''[[Strelitzia reginae]]'' (syn. ''S. parvifolia'') – Strelitzia, Bird of paradise, or Crane lily
*''[[Strelitzia juncea]]'' (Ker Gawl.) – African desert banana<ref>[http://www.rbgkew.org.uk/wcsp/namedetail.do?accepted_id=267251&repSynonym_id=267256&name_id=267251&status=true&checklist=monocots ''Strelitzia juncae''], [[Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew]]</ref>
*''S. × kewensis'' ([[Hybrid (biology)|hybrid]] between ''S. reginae'' and ''S. augusta'')

==Allergenic potential==
Plants in the genus ''Strelitzia '' produce no windborne pollen, and have an [[OPALS_(Ogren_Plant_Allergy_Scale)|OPALS]] allergy scale rating of 1 (considered "allergy-fighting").<ref name=Ogren>{{cite book|last1=Ogren|first1=Thomas|title=The Allergy-Fighting Garden|date=2015|publisher=Ten Speed Press|location=Berkeley, CA|isbn=978-1-60774-491-7|page=200}}</ref>

== See also ==
* [[List of Southern African indigenous trees]]

== References ==
{{Commons category|Strelitzia}}
{{reflist}}

[[:Category:Strelitziaceae]]
[[:Category:Zingiberales genera]]