TORDYLIUM L.HARTWORT

TORDYLIUM L. - HARTWORT

Scientific Description:

Scabrous to villous, branching annuals. Basal and lower cauline leaves simple, cordate to ovate, or 2-pinnate with 1−3 leaflets, terminal leaflets simple to lobed; upper cauline leaves simple to lobed. Umbels terminal, 5−40-rayed. Bracts lanceolate to linear, or nearly obsolete. Bracteoles 5, or obsolete, subequal to very unequal in length. Hermaphrodite and unisexual flowers present in same umbellule. Sepals present, usually unequal in length. Petals white to pale yellow with purplish tinge, with inflexed apex, and divided into 2 equal or very unequal lobes; peripheral ones strongly radiant. Mericarps ovate-elliptic to suborbicular; either all of them in the same umbellule strongly compressed, or the ones in the centre of umbellule hemispherical and unicarpellate, peripheral ones compressed; margins thickened, strongly moniliform to nearly smooth. Dorsal ridges obsolete. Valleculae 1-vittate (in one species 3-vittate); commissures 2-to multivittate.

Reference:
Alava R (1972). Tordylium L., In: Davis PH (ed.), Flora of Turkey and the East Aegean Islands, Edinburgh University Press, Edinurgh, 4: 504.

Public Description:

Tordylium is a genus of annual or biennial herbs, commonly known as “hartwort”, and is native to Europe, Balkans, Mediterranean basin, Crimea, South Russia, the Caucasus and northern Iran. There are 18 species in the world and 17 species (17 taxa) in Türkiye. They have flowers which are varying tones ranging from white to light yellow and purplish tinged. “Roman pimpernel (Tordylium apulum L.)” is used as a vegetable in Greece and as a flavouring in Italy.

References:

Anonymous 1 (2015). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tordylium/, Accessed date: 21.12.2015.

Anonymous 2 (2018). http://www.theplantlist.org/tpl1.1/record/kew-2435650, Accessed date: 10.03.2018.

Menemen Y (2012). Tordylium L., 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. 80.