LIMONIUM ELAPHONISICUM
Type:-GREECE. Crete: Crete, Ep. Selinos, bay between the island of Elafonisos and the cape of Krios. Collapsed beachrock/conglomerate reef partially covered by grey sands of medium size. Lon. 23° 33´ E; lat. 35° 16´ N; altitude: 3 m; exposure: SE, inclination: 14°; gravels, cobbles, large boulders present, 20 June 1990, Mayer 286 (holotype M!, isotype Herb. Mayer).
Description:- Plant perennial, glabrous, forming a sub-shrub 25-50 cm tall, with numerous ascending to erect stems and a robust tap-root. Caudices 3-10 cm long, branched, densely spirally leafy in the upper half.
Leaves:- Living leaves in rosettes at apices. Leaves fleshy, green, verrucate, 15-40 mm long and 2-5 mm broad, narrowly oblanceolate, apex acute to obtuse, retuse, flat or v-shaped in cross-section, with one central nerve, gradually tapering into the petiole. Stems green, 20-45 cm long, verrucate, sometimes with many crateriform glands, flexuous, constricted at the nodes, branching begins near the base; rarely proliferating in axils.
Flowers:- Inflorescence rhombic in outline. Sterile branches 1-9 per stem, 1-12 cm long, more or less straight, constricted at nodes, verrucate, undivided, only longer branches branched. Fertile branches 4-20 cm long, verrucate or tuberculate with many crateriform glands, constricted at nodes, straight to slightly curved, directed obliquely upwards, forming branching angles of 20°-40°, branched. Spikes 25-50 mm long, straight, directed obliquely upwards; often axis of spike with crateriform glands. Spikelets 8.0-9.5 mm long, composed of 1-7 flowers, mostly very remotely arranged with 1-4 per 2 cm. Outer bract 2.5-3.5 mm long and 2.0-2.6 mm broad, triangular-ovate, acute; bract margin broadly membranous; central part slightly fleshy, sometimes only at the base, acuminate. Middle bract membranous, 2.7-3.5 mm long and 2.0-2.2 mm broad, oblong-elliptic, rounded. Inner bract 7.3-8.0 mm long and 3.5-4.2 mm broad, oblong-obovate, rounded; bract margin broadly membranous; central part fleshy, 4.6-6.0 mm long and 2.1-3.6 mm broad, oblong-elliptic, acuminate, forming a narrowly triangular tip, 0.8-1.2 mm long, not reaching the upper margin. Calyx 5.0-6.1 mm long, exceeding the inner bract by 1.0-1.5 mm; calyx tube sparsely shortly to long hairy, only sometimes glabrous, with 5 ribs ending at or shortly before the base of lobes; calyx lobes ca. 0.7 × 0.9 mm, semi-elliptic. Corolla pale blue.
Distribution:- Confined to the southwestern coast of Crete, between Cape Elafonisos and Cape Krios
Habitat:- Calcareous rocky coast and sandy places.
Taxonomic remarks:- Habit and several features regarding the stems, leaves and spikelets show that L. elaphonisicum is closely related to L. chersonesum, from which it differs by having green stems and leaves and longer inner bracts.
Description:- Plant perennial, glabrous, forming a sub-shrub 25-50 cm tall, with numerous ascending to erect stems and a robust tap-root. Caudices 3-10 cm long, branched, densely spirally leafy in the upper half.
Leaves:- Living leaves in rosettes at apices. Leaves fleshy, green, verrucate, 15-40 mm long and 2-5 mm broad, narrowly oblanceolate, apex acute to obtuse, retuse, flat or v-shaped in cross-section, with one central nerve, gradually tapering into the petiole. Stems green, 20-45 cm long, verrucate, sometimes with many crateriform glands, flexuous, constricted at the nodes, branching begins near the base; rarely proliferating in axils.
Flowers:- Inflorescence rhombic in outline. Sterile branches 1-9 per stem, 1-12 cm long, more or less straight, constricted at nodes, verrucate, undivided, only longer branches branched. Fertile branches 4-20 cm long, verrucate or tuberculate with many crateriform glands, constricted at nodes, straight to slightly curved, directed obliquely upwards, forming branching angles of 20°-40°, branched. Spikes 25-50 mm long, straight, directed obliquely upwards; often axis of spike with crateriform glands. Spikelets 8.0-9.5 mm long, composed of 1-7 flowers, mostly very remotely arranged with 1-4 per 2 cm. Outer bract 2.5-3.5 mm long and 2.0-2.6 mm broad, triangular-ovate, acute; bract margin broadly membranous; central part slightly fleshy, sometimes only at the base, acuminate. Middle bract membranous, 2.7-3.5 mm long and 2.0-2.2 mm broad, oblong-elliptic, rounded. Inner bract 7.3-8.0 mm long and 3.5-4.2 mm broad, oblong-obovate, rounded; bract margin broadly membranous; central part fleshy, 4.6-6.0 mm long and 2.1-3.6 mm broad, oblong-elliptic, acuminate, forming a narrowly triangular tip, 0.8-1.2 mm long, not reaching the upper margin. Calyx 5.0-6.1 mm long, exceeding the inner bract by 1.0-1.5 mm; calyx tube sparsely shortly to long hairy, only sometimes glabrous, with 5 ribs ending at or shortly before the base of lobes; calyx lobes ca. 0.7 × 0.9 mm, semi-elliptic. Corolla pale blue.
Distribution:- Confined to the southwestern coast of Crete, between Cape Elafonisos and Cape Krios
Habitat:- Calcareous rocky coast and sandy places.
Taxonomic remarks:- Habit and several features regarding the stems, leaves and spikelets show that L. elaphonisicum is closely related to L. chersonesum, from which it differs by having green stems and leaves and longer inner bracts.
FIGURE 54. Limonium elaphonisicum A. Mayer. A) Habit; B) Spikelet; C) Outer bract; D) Middle bract; E) Inner bract; F) Calyx; G) Calyx lobes; H) Leaves. (Habit and leaves drawn from “Creta, isola di Elafonisos, Brullo & Giusso s.n., CAT”, spikelet details from “A. Mayer 286, M”).