Family |
Asteraceae
Achillea falcata
L.
Achillea falcata L.
≡ Achillea damascena DC.
≡ Achillea sulphurea Boiss.
(Sp. Pl.: 897, 1753; Nouvelle Flore du Liban et de la Syrie, vol. 3, p. 400; Pl. CCXVII nº 3a–b; 1983)
• Life-form & habit: Perennial herb, 15–45 cm tall; stems cylindrical, not furrowed.
• Leaves: Densely and shortly canescent, often falcate-recurved; cauline leaves linear, (1–)1.5–3 × 0.1–0.15 cm; upper leaves not reaching the corymbs, pinnatisect with closely imbricated segments 0.5–0.7 mm long, each with 3 orbicular denticulate lobes.
• Inflorescence & flowers: Capitula 3–40 in small corymbs 1.5–4 cm across; peduncles (2–)20–40 mm, much longer than the hemispheric involucres (3.5–6 × 3–6 mm). Bracts ovate-triangular to oblong, more or less acute, keeled, tomentose. Ligules 5–7, pale yellow, 1.5–2 mm long; disc florets 20–30.
• Fruit: Achenes glabrous, oblong, lacking pappus.
• Phenology: Flowers April–July.
• Habitat & elevation: Dry places, steppes, montane to subalpine habitats.
• Lebanese distribution: Afqa, Mdeirej, Sofar, Bcharré, Cedars, Hasroun, Ehden, Dimane, Jabal Kneissé, Rachaya.
• Syrian distribution: Widely distributed — e.g. ‘Ain Bourdai, Baalbeck, Madaya, Bloudane, Yabroud, Ma‘loula, Mnine, Qasyoun, Mayssaloun, Palmyra, Ma‘loula, Deir-ez-Zor, Chahba, Tell Hadid, Qastal, Deraa, Palmyra, etc..
• Native range: Iraq, Lebanon–Syria, Palestine, Turkey (POWO).