HODELUS RAMOSUS subsp. RAMOSUS

Family and Genus:- See- ASPHODELACEAE

Common Name:- White asphodel

Homotypic Synonyms:- None

Meaning:- Asphodelus (Gr) Silver rod.

Ramosus (L) Much branched, branching.

General description:- Robust, medium to tall perennial with numerous fleshy

roots.

Stem:-

1) up to 1m.

Leaves:-

1) 12-30 mm wide, ligulate, flat, slightly keeled beneath, grey-green.

Flowers:-

1) Blooms, 20-30 mm, borne in a much-branched inflorescence with the side

branches short and stubby.

2) Petals, usually 13-16 mm long, white with a pinkish-brown mid-vein.

3) Bracts, whitish, sometimes becoming brown on drying.

Fruit:-

1) Capsule, 8-14 x 5-11 mm, ovoid.

Key features:-

1) Bracts, whitish, sometimes becoming brown on drying.

2) Inflorescence, usually branched, the terminal branch scarcely exceeding the

laterals.

3) Capsule, 8-20 mm, ovoid.

Click here for a glossary of terms used.

Habitat:- Open shrubby places, rocky slopes, waste ground, roadsides, olive

groves, open pine forest, occasionally on the seashore.

Distribution:- Italy, Sicily, the Balkans and Crete eastwards. Widespread and

common on Crete.

Flowering time:- Jan-May.

Photo by:- Steve Lenton