BITUMINARIAC.H.Stirt. (=PSORALEA L.)TUMBLEWEED

BITUMINARIAC.H.Stirt. (=PSORALEA L.) - TUMBLEWEED

Scientific Description:

Hirsute perennials. Leaves trifoliolate, petiolate; stipules small, linear to lanceolate. Flowers shortly stalked, in umbels or racemes; bracts present or not. Calyx campanulate, 5-dentate, the lower two teeth longer than the rest. Corolla whitish, cream, or blue to violet; standard longer than wings and obtuse keel. Stamens monadelphous or diadelphous. Fruit 1-seeded, indehiscent, beaked or not.

Public Description:

Bituminaria, known as “tumbleweed”, is native to Türkiye, Europe, Crimea, Syria, Cyprus, Caucasia, Sinai and Africa. There are 4 species in the world and 2 species (2 taxa) in Türkiye. They are hairy perennial herbs with whitish, creamy, blue to violet flowers. They are found in open ground and in woodland.

References:

Anonymous 1 (2018). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bituminaria, Accessed date: 06.02.2018.

Anonymous 2 (2018). http://www.theplantlist.org/1.1/browse/A/Leguminosae/Bituminaria/, Accessed date: 06.02.2018.

Chamberlaın D F (1970). Psoralea. In: Davis, P.H. (ed.), Flora of Türkiye and the East Aegean Islands. Edinburgh University Press. Edinburgh, 3: 264.

Vural M (2012). Bituminaria C.H.Stirt., In: Güner, A., Aslan, S., Ekim, T., Vural, M. & Babaç, M.T. (eds.), Türkiye Bitkileri Listesi (Damarlı Bitkiler). Nezahat Gökyiğit Botanik Bahçesi ve Flora Araştırmaları Derneği Yayını. İstanbul, pp. 456.