Ornithogalum nutans

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Ornithogalum nutans, known as the drooping star-of-Bethlehem, is a bulbous perennial in the Asparagaceae family. Native to Europe and southwestern Asia, it grows 20–60 cm tall and about 5 cm wide, with strap-shaped leaves and hanging green-striped grey-white flowers that bloom in spring. It is cultivated and has naturalized outside its native range, including North America, where it can be invasive along the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal in Maryland. In North America it is less common than Ornithogalum umbellatum. The species name nutans means “nodding,” referring to the flowers’ drooping habit. It is hardy in USDA zones 6–10 and has the Royal Horticultural Society’s Award of Garden Merit.