Achillea ageratifolia (Sm.) Benth. & Hook, f.

3135 (2). A. ageratifolia (Sm.) Benth. & Hook, f., Gen. Pl. 2 (1873) 420; Anthemis ageratifolia Sm., Fl. Graec. Prodr. 2 (1813) 192; Achillea ageratifolia (Sibth. & Sm.) Boiss.   Fl. Or. 3 (1875) 275; Velen., Fl. Bulg. (1891) 268; Hayek, Prodr. Fl. Penins. Balc. 2 (1931) 632, p.p.; I. Richardson, Fl. Eur. 4 (1976) 160; Ptarmica ageratifolia (Sm.) Nyman, Consp. Fl. Eur. (1879) 364 - Едроцветен равнец

Fam:   Asteraceae (Compositae)
Genus:   Achillea L.
Species: Achillea ageratifolia (Sm.) Benth. & Hook, f.
English Name: Balkan yarrow or Greek yarrow

Description:

Perennial plant. The rhizome is massive, cylindrical, branched, with vertical and horizontal shares, with numerous short sterile leafy shoots forming larger or smaller tufts. Stems single or several erect, 10 - 30 cm high, leafy mainly in the lower half, densely wavy, round, finely longitudinally ribbed, simple or branched at the top. The leaves are more or less densely white to gray wavy, with a clear midrib; basal oblong to linearly spatulate, 20 - 45 mm long and (1) 2 - 4 (5) mm wide, gradually drained into narrow long petioles, more or less crested toothed to endowed, or almost entire; the middle folding leaves are few, linearly spatulate, sessile, up to 15 mm long and 1 - 2 mm wide, often at the base with 1 - (2) (3) pairs of shallow shares, in the upper half shallow indistinctly toothed. Baskets semi-spherical or semi-disc-shaped, 12 - 18 mm in diameter, single at the top of the stem or 2 - 6 at the tops of the branches, forming a complex thyroid inflorescence. The shell is 5 - 12 (15) mm wide, slightly concave at the base; envelope greenish, triangular-ovate to oblong-elliptic, obtuse to slightly pointed at the apex, at the end with a wide to 0.3 - 0.4 mm light to dark brown membranous edge, on the back and especially in the upper half with long white simple curved hairs; the outer ones are clearly shorter and narrower than the middle and inner ones. Peripheral (8) 10 - 12 tongue flowers; tongues white, back ovoid, 5 - 9 mm long; inner tubular, numerous, yellow; wreath with point glands. The flower bed is convex, hemispherical, with reticular pits. Bracts membranous, slightly keeled, greenish, brown on top. Fruits oblong, gray-brown, 1 mm long.

Variability

1    Basal leaves linearly spatulate, crested to serrated; basket single, at the top of the flowering stem …………. subsp. aizoon (Griseb.) Heimerl, Denkschr. Kaiserl. Acad. Wiss., Vienna. Math.-Naturwiss. Cl. 48 (1884) 134; Hayek, Prodr. Fl. Penins. Balc. 2 (1931) 632; Anthemis aizoon Griseb., Spic. Fl. Rumel. 2 (1846) 210; Achillea ageratifolia var. aizoon (Griseb.) Stoj. & Stef., Fl. Bulgarian ed. 1, 2 (1925) 1129. Middle Rhodopes (Trigrad Gorge), 1200-1300 m above sea level.
1* Basal leaves oblong-lobed, shallowly crested to entire; baskets (1) 2 - 6 in apical inflorescence ............................................................ 2
2    Flowering stem (3) 6 - 15 (18) cm; baskets 1 - 2 (3) in apical inflorescence, 5 - 7 mm wide subsp. ageratifolia. Western (Vratsata) and Middle Stara Planina., Znepole region, Vitosha region (Krapets), Slavyanka, Pirin, Middle Rhodopes (Red Wall), Thracian lowland (Besaparski hills), from 450 to 2600 m above sea level.
2* Flowering stem 10 - 20 (30) cm; baskets 2 - 6 in inflorescence, 3.5 - 6 mm wide ................ subsp. serbica (Nyman) Heimerl, Denkschr. Kaiserl. Acad. Wiss., Vienna. Math.-Naturwiss. Cl. 48 (1884) 134; Ptarmica ageratifolia subsp. serbca Nyman, Consp. Fl. Eur. (1879) 364; Achillea serbica (Nyman) Petrovich, Fl Agr. Nyss., Additamenta (1886) 102; A. serbica Nyman sensu I. Ricardson, Fl. Eur. 4 (1976) 160; A. ageratifolia var. serbica (Nyman) Hayek, Prodr. Fl. Penins. Balc. 2 (1931) 632; A. ageratifolia var. serbica (Boiss.) Nyman sensu Stoj. & Stef., Fl. Bulgarian ed. 1, 2 (1925) 1129; Exs .: Pl. Bulg. Exsicc. № 496 (sub A. ageratifolia). Western Stara Planina. (Vrachanska planina.), Znepole region (in the mountains Konyovska, Golo Bardo, Chepan, Rupina, Rui, Lyubasha), Strumska valley (between the town of Zemen and the village of Ruzhdavitsa), from 500 to 1500 m above sea level.

Note. 1. Achillea ageratifolia is a Balkan endemic with three subspecies. They are close morphologically, united by the morphology of the leaves and the features of the inflorescence, geographically differentiated, with almost allopatric areas (Franzen 1986). Subsp. ageratifolia is distributed from southern Serbia to the east, adhering to calcareous terrains, to the west. and Sredna Stara Planina., most of the mountains in southwestern Bulgaria, to the south - to Central Greece. Subsp. aizoon is found in the southern regions of the Republic of Macedonia, North. Greece (Olympus), in our country - in the Middle Rhodopes (Trigrad Gorge). Subsp. serbica is distributed from Kosovo and Macedonia in the east to Bulgaria (Znepol region and Struma Valley) (cf. Saukel & al. 2003).

The revision of A. ageratifolia in the Bulgarian herbariums showed that Stoyanov & Stefanov (1925) in the first and later editions of "Flora of Bulgaria" do not indicate for the country “var. ageratifolia" as for the regions in which meets this taxon instead it is indicated “var. aizoon“ Kuzmanov (1991) reports for Bulgaria the two varieties, but again most of the data on the distribution of “var. aizoon" are followed by the authors of "Flora of Bulgaria". (MA).

From:    „Флора на Република България”, том XI, БАН, Академично издателство „Проф. Марин Дринов”, София, (2013)

*     *     *     *     *
Achillea ageratifolia, the Balkan yarrow or Greek yarrow, is a species of flowering plant in the daisy family Asteraceae, native to Greece and Bulgaria. Growing to 20 cm (7.9 in) tall and broad, it is a compact herbaceous perennial. It is a highly variable species, with three recognized subspecies. They have erect, simple, somewhat woody based stems.[4] The narrow grey-green foliage resembles that of a related genus Ageratum, hence the Latin specific epithet ageratifolia.[5] The solitary, daisy-like composite flower heads are white with yellow centres.
In cultivation in the UK, this plant has received the Royal Horticultural Society’s Award of Garden Merit.[6] A hardy, adaptable plant, it prefers a sunny open position.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

*     *     *     *     *

Achillea ageratifolia (Sibth. & Sm.) Benth. & Hook.f. is an accepted name

This name is the accepted name of a species in the genus Achillea (family Compositae).
The record derives from TICA (data supplied on 2012-02-11) which reports it as an accepted name (record F2A45C52-6509-48DC-9736-77FABDC085E5) with original publication details: 420 1873.

From:    Achillea ageratifolia (Sibth. & Sm.) Benth. & Hook.f. - The Plant ...

www.theplantlist.org › tpl › record › gcc-85123

*     *     *     *     *

Flowering Time: Blooms: V - VШ, fruitful: VII - IX.

Distribution in Bulgaria: Growing in calcareous rocky and stony places, in the foothills and mountains. Western and Central Stara Planina, Sofia region, Vitosha region (Krapets), Znepole region, Strumska valley (Between Zemen and Ръждавица), Slavyanka, Pirin, Mesta river valley, Middle Rhodopes, Thracian lowland, from 450 to 2600 m above sea level. (Conspectus of the Bulgarian Vascular Flora) = conspectus&gs_l= Zlc.

Distribution: Albania, Central and Northern Greece, Republic of Macedonia, Serbia, Montenegro. Balkan endemic

Conservation status and threats: not protected species in Bulgaria by the Biodiversity Law. - Biological Diversity Act -    http://eea.government.bg/bg/legislation/biodiversity/zbran_22.08.15.pdf

Medical plant: it is not medicinal plant - Medicinal Plants Act - http://eea.government.bg/bg/legislation/biodiversity/ZLR_en.pdf

References: „Флора на Република България”, том XI, БАН, Академично издателство „Проф. Марин Дринов”, София, (2013), Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, www.theplantlist.org › tpl › record › gcc-85123

Back to BEGINNING

^© Copy right: K. Nanev© 2012. All rights reserved