gentian

gentian

gentian , common name for some members of the Gentianaceae, a family of widely distributed herbs, chiefly perennial and fall blooming. There are many types of gentians (genus Gentiana and similar species of other genera), most of which have blue flowers. Gentians flourish in north-temperate and alpine regions. Many are grown as ornamentals in rock gardens; the alpine blue gentian (usually G. acaulis, native to Europe) is most common. Indigenous North American species include the bottle, or closed, gentian of the East, the similar soapwort gentian of the West, and several fringed gentians (especially G. crinita ), rare and beautiful wildflowers cultivated with difficulty in gardens. Some members of the family are aquatic or marsh plants, e.g., the marsh pinks (genus Sabatia ) and the floating heart, or water snowflake (genus Nymphoides ). Stomachics and bitter tonics have been made from ancient times from the rhizomes and roots of several species, especially the European yellow gentian ( G. lutea ), which is also used in the manufacture of liqueurs. Gentians are classified in the division Magnoliophyta , class Magnoliopsida, order Gentianales, family Gentianaceae.

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"gentian." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

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gentian

gen·tian / ˈjenchən/ • n. a plant (genera Gentiana and Gentianella, family Gentianaceae) of temperate and mountainous regions, typically with violet or vivid blue trumpet-shaped flowers, including the four-petaled fringed gentian (Gentiana crinita) of North America.

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"gentian." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

"gentian." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-gentian.html

"gentian." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-gentian.html

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gentian

gentian XIV. — L. gentiāna, so called, acc. to Pliny, after Gentius, a king of Illyria; see -IAN.

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T. F. HOAD. "gentian." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

T. F. HOAD. "gentian." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-gentian.html

T. F. HOAD. "gentian." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-gentian.html

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gentian

gentian (Gentiana) See GENTIANACEAE.

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MICHAEL ALLABY. "gentian." A Dictionary of Plant Sciences. 1998. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

MICHAEL ALLABY. "gentian." A Dictionary of Plant Sciences. 1998. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O7-gentian.html

MICHAEL ALLABY. "gentian." A Dictionary of Plant Sciences. 1998. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O7-gentian.html

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gentian

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desertion, disconcertion, dispersion, diversion, emersion, excursion, exertion, extroversion, immersion, incursion, insertion, interspersion, introversion, Persian, perversion, submersion, subversion, tertian, version •excerption

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"gentian." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

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