Family |
Brassicaceae
Heldreichia bupleurifolia
Boiss.
Leb. Syr. Tur. Pal.
Heldreichia bupleurifolia Boiss.
(First published in Ann. Sci. Nat., Bot., sér. 2, 16: 381; 1841. Treated in Nouvelle Flore du Liban et de la Syrie, vol. 2, p. 87, Pl. XXXIV nº 2; 1970)
• Life-form & habit: Perennial herb with thin, branched stems arising from a short rhizome, 10 – 30 cm tall, often tufted.
• Leaves: Somewhat fleshy, oblong-spatulate, petiolate, spaced along the stem.
• Inflorescence & flowers: Short terminal racemes. Sepals ovate, greenish, tinged with purple, bordered in white, slightly saccate at the base. Petals white to pale pink, about half again longer than the sepals.
• Fruit: Silicules orbicular-ovate, 5 × 8 mm, slightly notched and cordate at the apex, nearly divided in two halves; style very short. Variety subtriloba Boiss. (the only one present in Lebanon) shows a small triangular prolongation at the apex, ending in a mucron of 1–2 mm.
• Phenology: Flowers June to August.
• Habitat & elevation: Rocky high mountain slopes.
• Lebanese distribution: Mount Lebanon (Sannine, Col des Cèdres, Qornet es-Saouda) and Mt Hermon.
• Native range: Lebanon-Syria, Palestine, Turkey (POWO).
• Conservation notes: A localized montane crucifer, endemic to the Levant. Populations are confined to high rocky summits, threatened by grazing pressure, trampling, and pine tree afforestation projects in the subalpine zone.
• ⚠️ Taxonomic note: Boissier described var. subtriloba from Lebanon, characterized by its mucronate silicules. Mouterde treated this as the only Lebanese representative of the species.