CALICOTOME VILLOSA

Family and Genus:- See- LEGUMINOSAE

Common Name:- Spiny broom

Homotypic Synonyms:- Calicotome spinosa var. villosa, Calicotome spinosa

subsp. villosa, Calicotome villosa var. genuina, Genista villosa, Lygoplis

villosum, Spartium villosum.

Meaning:- Calicotome. Meaning unknown.

Villosa (L) With long rough hairs, shaggy.

General description:- Erect, rigid, much-branched deciduous shrub. Young

branches terete, striate, densely sericeous-villous, terminating in a strong spine.

Stems:-

1) Up to 50-200 cm tall

Leaves:-

1) Trifoliolate.

2) Leaflets, obovate, obtuse, glabrous above, sericeous beneath.

Flowers:-

1) Flowers, in short, axillary clusters of 3-10.

2) Calyx, tubular, upper part breaking away at anthesis and lower part remaining as

a small cup.

3) Corolla, bright yellow:

a) standard, 12-20 mm, glabrous.

Fruit:-

1) Legume, 20-50 mm, linear-oblong, flattened, dorsal vein conspicuously winged.

densely patent-villous, becoming reddish when quite ripe.

2) Seeds, (1-)3-8.

Key features:-

1) Flowers, mostly in fascicles of 2-15, or ebracteate racemes.

2) Legumes, villous or sericeous, sometimes sparsely so.

Click here for a glossary of terms used.

Habitat:- An important constituent of open dry shrubby vegetation, scrubland

vegetation, common in coastal areas. 0-700(-1200) m.

Distribution:- W. Med from Spain to Italy, Sicily and Greece. Widespread and and

common on Crete.

Flowering time:- Mar-June.

Photos by:- Steve Lenton