Centaurea tomentella Handel-Mazzetti (1913: 450)

Negaresh, Kazem & Rahiminejad, Mohammad Reza, 2018, A revision of Centaurea sect. Cynaroides (Asteraceae, Cardueae-Centaureinae), Phytotaxa 363 (1), pp. 448-450 : 448-450

35. Centaurea tomentella Handel-Mazzetti (1913: 450) . Type:— TURKEY. C7 Adiyaman: Trockene Hänge bei Karamuhara am Lilan Tschai im Plateau südlich von Kjachta (Kahta) gegen den Euphrat, Kalk, 650 m, 9 July 1910, Handel-Mazzetti 1953 (lectotype W! designated by Wagenitz 1960: 489, isolectotype WU!). ( Fig. 75 )

Biennial plants, with thick fleshy taproot, whole plant usually green opaque or green-brownish, 25–100 cm tall; collar of fibrous petiolar remains present at stem base. Stem erect, simple, sometimes branched from near base, 4–15 mm in diam. at base, cylindrical, whitish, loosely leafy throughout, densely covered with white-tomentose hairs. Leaves firm, undivided, basal and lower ones sparsely covered with hirsute-articulate hairs, more densely along midrib and veins, sometimes mixed with tomentose hairs, other leaves densely covered with white-tomentose hairs. Basal leaves usually with a long petiole (up to 22 cm long), sometimes withered at anthesis, oblong-cordate, rarely elliptic, 17–33 × 6–8 cm, entire, acute at apex. Lower cauline leaves simple, lanceolate or oblong, 13–20 × 4–6 cm, sometimes with basal auricles, subacute or acute at apex. Median cauline leaves sessile, oblong or oblong-lanceolate, 7–13 × 2–5 cm, narrowly decurrent, up to 6 mm along stem, entire, sometimes denticulate, acute at apex. Upper cauline leaves increasingly smaller, sessile, lanceolate, narrowly lanceolate or lanceolate-linear, 3–9 × 0.5–3 cm, decurrent, up to 12 mm along stem, entire, mucronate at apex (5–10 mm long). Capitula numerous, variable in number, usually 3–10 sometimes up to 70, arranged in a raceme or spike, sessile or with peduncles usually short, up to 8 cm long. Involucres broadly ovoid or ovoid-subglobose, truncate at base, 30–40 × 28–35 mm. Phyllaries multiseriate, yellow-greenish, imbricate, coriaceous-scarious, glabrous. Appendages very firm, totally concealing phyllaries, not decurrent, triangular, yellow and shiny, 4–5 mm wide at base (excluding cilia); cilia patent, numerous, 6–10 on each side, 5–6(–8) mm long; spines narrowly triangular, (7–)9–12(–17) mm long, longer than nearest cilia. Flowers pink or purple; central florets hermaphroditic, 28–32 mm long, corolla 12–13 mm long, 5-lobed, lobes 5–6 mm long; peripheral florets sterile, nearly equal to central ones, numerous (15–20 in each capitulum) and conspicuous, finely dissected, not radiant, 4- lobed, limb lobes linear. Achenes lanceolate, ca. 5–5.5 mm long, 2.8–3 mm wide, smooth and shiny, whitish, rounded at apex, glabrous; insertion areole lateral, ca. 0.8 mm long. Pappus double, persistent, multiseriate, scabrous, brownish or whitish, 8–10 mm long, bristles of inner rows much shorter than others, ca. 2 mm long.

Taxonomic and distribution remarks: — Centaurea tomentella is endemic to Adiyaman, Malatya and Maraş Provinces , S Turkey ( Fig. 76 ). It is an Irano-Turanian element, and grows on dry slopes, fallow fields and vineyards, at elevations of 600–1450 m. It closely resembles C. cataonica subsp. cataonica in its habit .

Chromosome numbers: — Uysal et al. (2009) and Askoy et al. (2016) reported the same chromosome number 2 n = 2 x =18 for Centaurea tomentella .

Selected specimens examined:— TURKEY. B6 Maraş (Kahramanmaraş): near Findik, between Çardak and Göksun, 23 July 1952, Davis 20240 ( E!); S of Göksun-Elbistan road, E of Çardak , between Dagdere and Soysalli, 1270 m, 19 August 2001, Reeves & Adigüzel 2320 ( E!); Çardak-Esence köyü, 1350 m, 18 August 2001, Reeves & Adigüzel 2317 ( E!) . C6 Maraş: near Maraş, 12 July 1865, Haussknecht s.n. ( JE!); Kahraman maraş, prope Marasch, Haussknecht s.n. ( JE!); s.c. s.n. ( ISTE!) . B7 Malatya: 18 km from Malatya to Pütürge , 950 m, Huber-Morath 9297 (Hb. Hub. - Mor.!) .

Figures

FIGURE 75. Centaurea tomentella Handel-Mazzetti (Handel-Mazzetti 1953, W). Scale 2 cm.

FIGURE 76. Distribution of Centaurea tomentella (squares), C. zaferii (circles), and C. zarrei (triangles).