Family |
Asteraceae
Centaurea Mouterdei
Wagenitz
Endemic to Lebanon
Centaurea mouterdei Wagenitz
(Nouvelle Flore du Liban et de la Syrie, vol. 3, p. 491; Pl. CCLXXXIX nº 2; 1983)
Life-form & habit: Green, nearly glabrous perennial. Stems 20–100 cm tall, often branched from the base, mono- or oligocéphalous.
Leaves: Basal leaves large, petiolate, lanceolate and dentate or lyrate with 3 pairs of small, linear-lanceolate lateral segments. Middle leaves pinnatipartite or undivided, truncate at base, irregularly dentate, oblong.
Inflorescence & flowers: Peduncles long, mostly naked. Involucre subglobose to ovoid, ~22 × 18–23 mm. Involucral bracts slightly tomentose, mostly hidden by reflexed appendages.
Appendages: Spine-like, 20–25 mm long, with small basal spinules, decurrent and ciliolate-fringed on bract margins.
Flowers: Rose-purple; marginal florets non-radiant.
Fruit: Achenes 5.5–6 mm long.
Pappus: 10–11 mm, with an inner series of 2 mm.
Phenology: Flowers in April–May.
Habitat & elevation: Rocky fissures and stony ground in less arid mountain zones.
Lebanese distribution: Mi. Nahr Damour gorges near Jisr el-Qadi; Mm. Jezzine; Met. Machghara. Additional records from Zabbougha, Kfertay, Bekish and Baskinta (florafauna.life).
Native range: Endemic to Lebanon