Muscari armeniacum: Miniature Blue or Purple Beauty of Grape Hyacinth

Summary: Muscari armeniacum, known commonly as grape hyacinth, is a petite, Old World bulbous plant prized for its dense clusters of blue-to-purple fragrant flowers.

Wild Grape Hyacinth (Muscari armeniacum), Oshakan, Aragatsotn province, western Armenia: Raffi Kojian of Armeniapedia.org, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Muscari armeniacum is an Old World bulbous plant in the asparagus family, Asparagaceae. Muscari armeniacum is native to Eurasia, from the Mediterranean region (southern Europe, North Africa, Asia Minor) to the Caucasus Mountains.

German horticulturist and plant collector Maximilian Leichtlin (Feb. 17, 1831-Jan. 19, 1910) is credited with bringing Muscari armeniacum into cultivation in 1876.

Muscari armeniacum is known commonly in English as Armenian grape hyacinth or grape hyacinth.

Grape hyacinth is a petite plant that ranges in height from 6 to 12 inches (15.24 to 30.48 centimeters). The Old World bulbous plant usually spreads proportionately in the same range of 6 to 12 inches (15.24 to 30.48 centimeters).

One to three leafless flower stalks, known as scapes, emerge from a somewhat globular, no-care, winter-hardy bulb.

Bright green, strap-shaped leaves grow as basal clumps to present slender silhouettes, with lengths generally ranging from 6 to 9 inches (15.24 to 22.86 centimeters) and with a width of around one-fourth of an inch (0.635 centimeters).

Flowers open in dense, conical racemes (Latin: racemus, “cluster of grapes”) by the end of March or the beginning of April. A faint, sweet fragrance wafts from the bell- or urn-shaped flowers. Showy flowers favor coloring of deep cobalt blue or vibrant purple but also appear in varieties as pale pink or white.

Grape hyacinth performs admirably in indoor and outdoor plantings.

Container gardening offers a plethora of opportunities for showcasing the miniature beauty in demure or elegant settings.

Despite its petite stature, grape hyacinth stands out in beds and borders in an array of garden styles, from cottage to rock to woodland.

Grape hyacinth dazzles in mass plantings, such as the famous Blue River in Keukenhof Park in Lisse, South Holland province, northwestern Netherlands.

The Royal Horticultural Society, founded in London, England, in 1804, has recognized grape hyacinth as an excellent garden performer by bestowing its prestigious Award of Garden Merit (AGM) on: Muscari armeniacum in 1993; Muscari armeniacum 'Christmas Pearl' in 2003; and Muscari armeniacum 'Saffier' in 2003.

Muscari armeniacum propagates through its bulbs and via seed dispersal. A few springs ago grape hyacinth announced its unexpected, wild appearance at the north end of the narrow garden bed along the south section of my front porch.

Muscari armeniacum foliage limped from underneath almost 20 inches (50.8 centimeters) of snow that smothered my yard in the three brutal snowfalls of late winter 2015. Despite stunted growth, 13 stems have produced delicate, dense floral clusters that opened Tuesday, April 7,  in deep blueness. One dwarf stem is topped with a super-miniaturized trio of three determined flowers.

Whether blooming abundantly or sparsely, grape hyacinth flowers prettify the landscape.

'Pink Sunrise' is a pale pink cultivar of Muscari armeniacum; April 6, 2013: Takashi .M (ai3310X), CC BY 2.0, via Flickr

Acknowledgment

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

Image credits:

Wild Grape Hyacinth (Muscari armeniacum), Oshakan, Aragatsotn province, western Armenia: Raffi Kojian of Armeniapedia.org, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons @ http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Muscari_armeniacum.jpg

'Pink Sunrise' is a pale pink cultivar of Muscari armeniacum; April 6, 2013: Takashi .M (ai3310X), CC BY 2.0, via Flickr @ https://www.flickr.com/photos/93277085@N08/8622559473/

For further information:

Marriner, Derdriu. "Grape Hyacinth: Pretty Blue or Purple Palette of Muscari armeniacum." Earth and Space News. Monday, Feb. 9, 2015.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2015/02/muscari-armeniacum-miniature-blue-or.html