Knautia purpurea, (Vili.) Borbas

Tutin, T. G., Heywood, V. H., Burges, N. A., Moore, D. M., Valentine, D. H., Walters, S. M. & Webb, D. A., 1976, Flora Europaea. Volume 4. Plantaginaceae to Compositae (and Rubiaceae), Cambridge University Press : 66

34. K. purpurea (Vili.) Borbás , Acta Inst. Bot. Kolozsvár 1: 51 (1904)

( Trichera collina (Req.) Reichenb. ).

Perennial, rarely short-lived; stock sympodial, with leaf-rosettes and flowering stems, without underground stolons. Stem (1O-)15-5O(-8O) cm; lower internodes short, finely hirsute and pubescent; peduncles glandular. Leaves membranous to subcoriaceous, oblonglanceolate, sparsely hirsute, subtomentose or subglabrous; lower sometimes undivided, subdentate; upper 1- to 2-pinnate, with (4-)8-16(-20) narrowly oblong or linear-lanceolate, often rather deeply dentate, lateral lobes and a lanceolate-rhombic terminal lobe shorter than the divided part. Capitula (1-5-)l-8-2-5(-3-5) cm in diameter. Calyx cupuliform, 8- to 10(-12)-awned. Corolla purple to violet. In = 20. Dry grassland and rocky slopes. W. Mediterranean region, S.W. & S.C. Alps. Ga He Hs It?Si.

In S. Italy more robust, short-lived perennial plants with broadly rhombic-ovate terminal leaf-lobes occur; they appear related to 17 and are very similar to taxa described from N.W. Africa such as K. numidica (Debeaux & Reverchon) Szabó , Bot. Jahrb. 36: 437 (1905). These and 34 are possibly conspecific.

In S.W. Europe and W. Italy delimitation from 29 seems to coincide with diploid-tetraploid differences but morphological separation is sometimes difficult. Close contacts are evident with parallel tomentose diploids; transitional variants occur between 34 and the tomentose, diploid 27 in the S.W. Alps and 28 in Italy and Sicilia.

A tetraploid population of small tomentose plants with narrowly lanceolate, predominantly undivided and subdentate, or sublyrate leaves with 2-4 small lateral lobes and eglandular peduncles, occurs in S.W. France (S. of Cahors); its status requires investigation.