Family |
Fabaceae
Astragalus trifoliolatus
Boiss.
Astragalus trifoliolatus Boiss.
(Diagn. Pl. Orient.; Nouvelle Flore du Liban et de la Syrie, vol. 2; 1969)
• Life-form & habit : Perennial chamaephyte forming low, compact to somewhat diffuse tufts; caudex woody, branched; stems short, ascending, covered with appressed silky hairs, giving a greyish appearance.
• Leaves : Trifoliolate; leaflets 3, obovate to elliptic (8–20 mm), densely sericeous on both surfaces; petiole short; stipules membranous, partly adnate, pubescent.
• Inflorescence & flowers : Axillary racemes, short, few-flowered; peduncles shorter than or equalling the leaves; flowers pale yellow to creamy-white; calyx tubular, densely hairy with subulate teeth; standard slightly longer than wings and keel.
• Fruit : Legumes ovoid to oblong, slightly inflated, densely pubescent, containing several seeds; dehiscent at maturity.
• Phenology : Flowers from April to June; fruiting from May to July.
• Habitat & elevation : Rocky slopes, open steppe, and limestone substrates; 800–1800 m.
• Lebanese distribution : Scattered in the Beqa‘a and Anti-Lebanon regions; local.
• Native range : Lebanon-Syria, Palestine, Türkiye.
• Conservation notes : Assessed as Endangered (EN) in the Red List of the Vascular Flora of Lebanon (IUCN criteria); populations are small and fragmented, threatened by overgrazing and habitat degradation.
• Diagnostic remarks : Immediately distinguished within Astragalus by its trifoliolate leaves, a rare character in the genus; combined with its compact habit and silky indumentum, it is easily separable from all sympatric species.