Since ‘ornis’ means bird, and ‘gala’ means ‘milk’, the name of this genus is ‘bird’s milk’. The flower’s white colour and the elegance of the flowers themselves are quite probably the reasons for the name, since it is difficult to make any other plausible link between ‘bird’ and ‘milk’. The genus, Ornithogalum includes many species – about 150 of them – which occur in their natural habitats predominantly on the continents of Africa, Asia and Europe. Of the modest few in cultivation, the ones listed here are winter hardy. These ornithogalums are trouble-free, grow in any soil and naturalise easily.
