Matthiola fruticulosa

Matthiola fruticulosa is a perennial herb that grows in dry and rocky places in the Mediterranean basin, except in Corsica and Sardinia.

Detail of the flower

Flowers with typical undulating petals

In its habitat, in the region of La Segarra, CataloniaFlores

Description

It is a perennial, herbaceous plant, subwoody at the base, with stems between 10 and 60 cm tall covered with dense white hairs. The leaves are alternate, oblong to linear, greyish-green. It blooms between early spring and mid-summer, forming inflorescences of yellow to purple flowers, pedicelate, with four petals arranged in a cross, up to 3 cm long, and sepals up to 15 mm long. The fruit is a cylindrical silique.

Distribution and habitat

Spain, Portugal and France. In Spain it is distributed in arid areas, in more rainy areas it occupies sandy soils that dry out quickly and do not allow the growth of other plants that require more moisture. It needs calcareous or chalky soils, it is not found on slates or granites. It is common in the calcareous interior mountains, such as the Iberian System and the Betic mountains. Less scarce as aridity decreases, it reaches the Pre-Pyrenees, part of the Sierra de Ávila, the Cantabrian Mountains, the western Costa del Sol and the Balearic Islands. It grows in thyme, sunny pastures, terophytic meadows, rubble heaps and roadsides, on limestone, sand, gypsum marl, on stony, poor or non-existent soils.

Taxonomy

Matthiola fruticulosa was described by (Loefl. ex L.) Maire and published in Catalogue des Plantes du Maroc 2: 311. 1932.

Etymology

Matthiola: generic name dedicated to the Italian physician and botanist Pietro Andrea Gregorio Mattioli.

fruticulosa: Latin epithet meaning "somewhat bushy".

Sinonimia

• Cheiranthus varius Sm. in Sibth. " Sm. [1813]
• Matthiola fruticulosa Markgr. in Hegi [1959]
• Matthiola varies (Sm.) DC. [1821]
• Matthiola tristis (L.) R.Br. in W.T.Aiton [1812]
• Matthiola thessala Boiss. " Orph. in Boiss. [1867]
• Matthiola telum Pomel [1874]
• Matthiola stenopetala Pomel [1874]
• Matthiola provincialis (L.) Markgr. in Hegi [1959]
• Matthiola lunata ssp. leroyi Laínz [1958]
• Matthiola coronopifolia (Sm.) DC. [1821]
• Hesperis provincialis L. [1753]
• Cheiranthus tristis L. [1759]
• Cheiranthus coronopifolius Sm. in Sibth. " Sm. [1813]
• Hesperis angustifolia Lam. [1789]
• Cheiranthus fruticulosus Loefl. ex L.

Common name

• Castellano: algalia, alhelí, alhelí of field, alhelí of the field, sad alhelí, hesperis that smell of night, popcorn.