Lotus flowers
| Lotus flowers | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Indian lotus flower ( Nelumbo nucifera ) |
||||||||||||
| Systematics | ||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||
| Scientific name of the family | ||||||||||||
| Nelumbonaceae | ||||||||||||
| A.Rich. | ||||||||||||
| Scientific name of the genus | ||||||||||||
| Nelumbo | ||||||||||||
| Adans. |
The lotus flower ( Nelumbo ) also Lotus or Lotus called, are the only genus of the plant family of the lotus plants (Nelumbonaceae). Of the only two species, one is native to the New World and the other to Asia and northern Australia. Both species and their hybrids are used as ornamental plants and provide food.
description
The two lotus species are perennial, herbaceous aquatic plants with rhizomes . Different leaves are formed ( heterophylly ). The leaves are shield-shaped (peltat). Stipules are present. The large flowers are hermaphroditic, with many free carpels . The pollination is done by beetles.
The special thing about the leaves of the lotus is that they are liquid-repellent, so that, for example, water simply rolls off. This keeps the leaves clean and prevents fungi or other organisms that could harm the plant from spreading on them ( lotus effect ).
Systematics
The genus Nelumbo was established in 1763 by Michel Adanson in Familles des Plantes , 2, p. 76, 582. Nelumbo is the only genus in the Nelumbonaceae family . The first publication of the Nelumbonaceae family is Achille Richard in Bory: Dictionnaire Classique d'Histoire Naturelle, par Messieurs Audouin, Isid. Bourdon, Ad. Brongniart, de Candolle… et Bory de Saint-Vincent. , 11, 1827, p. 492.
The genus Nelumbo contains only two species:
- Indian lotus flower ( Nelumbo nucifera Gaertn. , Syn .: Nelumbo caspica Eichw. , Nelumbo komarovii Grossh. , Nelumbo nelumbo (L.) Druce , nom. Inval., Nelumbo speciosum Willd. , Nymphaea nelumbo L. )
- American lotus flower ( Nelumbo lutea Willd. , Syn .: Nelumbo nucifera subsp. Lutea (Willd.) T. Borsch & Barthlott , Nelumbo pentapetala (Walter) Willd. , Nymphaea pentapetala Walter ).
Possible confusion of common names
The tiger lotus or white Egyptian lotus is just like the blue lotus flower a species in the genus of the water lilies ( Nymphaea ) in the family of the water lily plants and is not related to the real lotus.
symbolism
Its ability to reject filth made the lotus a symbol of purity, loyalty, creativity and enlightenment in large parts of Asia. The symbol can be found in both Hinduism and Buddhism , where the enlightened ( Buddhas ), especially Siddhartha Gautama , are regularly represented standing or sitting on an open lotus flower or a lotus throne.
Its symbolism is particularly diverse in China : Due to the fact that they have the same sound, the words love and harmonious marital bond are associated with the lotus; the lotus blossom is therefore also a symbol of a good marriage. The red lotus flower in particular is a symbol of the vagina . In Buddhism, the lotus is one of the eight treasures and is a symbol of the passage of time (with the individual phases of fruit, blossom and stems) and of the effect of the Buddha's teaching (the roots are in the mud, but the lotus blossoms on the surface). In Daoism the lotus is an attribute of the Daoist immortal He Xiangu .
As an anthemion , lotus flowers also have a meaning in art. The domes of Islamic mausoleums and mosques of Mughal architecture in India regularly end in upturned marble lotus blossoms (e.g. Taj Mahal ). The shape of the lotus blossom was also taken up by the Baha'i as a symbol of purity : the first Baha'i temple in India, a sacred building for followers of all religions, is modeled on the shape of a lotus flower.
use
The roots, fruits, seeds and stems of both species are eaten. Isolated occurrences of the American lotus in Connecticut and Delaware valleys could be due to cultivation by Native American tribes.
The leaves are used as packaging for food, and parts of the plant are used as medicine. The seeds of the Indian lotus are used in prayer chains and the dried lotus fruit is used as a calligraphy brush. The fibers of the stems and leaves can be spun into lotus silk .
Because of its dirt-repellent properties, the so-called lotus effect , it is a research object for surface sealing .
Others
The University of Tokyo has a Lotus Research Center.
photos
Fruit, from Nelumbo nucifera , close-up
Close up of a lotus leaf
Lotus leaves in the rain
Silvery, shiny raindrops form on the lotus leaves (center), the leaves of the normal water lily (lower edge of the picture) are completely wetted by the water
Pickled lotus root with ginger and lemon, as eaten in Japan
Fried lotus root slices in China
Indian lotus flower
.jpg)
See also
literature
- The family of Nelumbonaceae in APWebsite. (Section systematics)
- The Nelumbonaceae family at DELTA by L. Watson & MJ Dallwitz. (Section description)
- John. H. Wiersema: Nelumbonaceae - text same online as printed work , In: Flora of North America Editorial Committee (Ed.): Flora of North America North of Mexico , Volume 3 - Magnoliidae and Hamamelidae , Oxford University Press, New York and Oxford, 1997 . ISBN 0-19-511246-6 (sections Description, distribution and systematics)
- Dezhi Fu & John H. Wiersema: Nelumbonaceae , p. 114 - same text online as the printed work , In: Wu Zhengyi, Peter H. Raven, Deyuan Hong (Eds.): Flora of China , Volume 6 - Caryophyllaceae through Lardizabalaceae , Science Press and Missouri Botanical Garden Press, Beijing and St. Louis, 2001. ISBN 1-930723-05-9 (Sections Description, Distribution and Systematics)
- Kazuaki Tanahashi ; Allan Baillie (photos). LOTOS . Tanahashi presents original translations of poems and texts from Chinese and Japanese on the symbolism and uses of the plant. Translated from the English: Friederike Boissevain and Uwe Dehler.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ^ Wolfram Eberhard: Lexicon of Chinese symbols . Munich 1983, ISBN 3-424-00750-1
- ↑ a b Keyword Nelumbonaceae. In: Reinhard Lieberei, Wolfgang Franke, Christoph Reisdorff: Mansfeld's Encyclopedia of Agricultural and Horticultural Crops: (Except Ornamentals). Springer, 2001, p. 141.
- ^ John F. Mariani: Encyclopedia of American Food and Drink. Lebhar-Friedman Books, 1999. ISBN 0-86730-784-6 , p. 291.
- ↑ Kazuaki Tanahashi : LOTOS . Berlin 2013, ISBN 978-3-9815371-3-0
- ↑ arte TV : Film 'Mysterious Plants' (2010); Director: Francois-Xavier Vives.