ORNITHOGALUM

genus of plants in the family Liliaceae, consisting of about 100 species of bulbous herbs, native to Eurasia and Africa. The leaves are grouped at the base of the plant, and the white or yellow bell- or star-shaped flowers are borne in clusters at the top of a leafless stalk. Each flower is on a short stem, with a bract (leaflike structure) below it. Star-of-Bethlehem (O. umbellatum), a common garden ornamental, has white-marked leaves and white star-shaped flowers. There is a wide green band on the outside of three segments of each flower.