Rhaponticum scariosum
Encyclopedia
Rhaponticum scariosum, common name Giant Scabiosa, is a perennial herbaceous
flowering plant
of the genus Rhaponticum
, belonging to the Asteraceae
family.
, as its overwintering buds are situated just below the soil surface and the floral axis is more or less erect with a few leaves.
Rhaponticum scariosum reaches on average 30–150 cm (11.8–59.1 ) in height. The strong, thick, upright stem is leafy and hairy, woolly-tomentose
and usually has only one inflorescence. The leaves are green, while its underside is white-tomentose
, with irregularly toothed edges. The basal leaves are heart-shaped and petiolated, about 30–40 cm (11.8–15.7 ) long, the upper leaves are smaller, lanceolate, about 10–22 cm (3.9–8.7 ) long. The flower heads are pink to purple, spherical and very large (about 6–7 cm (2.4–2.8 ) in diameter). The bracts are brownish and scarious. The flowering period extends from June to August.The flowers are hermaphroditic
and are pollinated by insects. The fruits are brown achenes.
, France
, Switzerland
, Austria
and Slovenia
.
Herbaceous
A herbaceous plant is a plant that has leaves and stems that die down at the end of the growing season to the soil level. They have no persistent woody stem above ground...
flowering plant
Flowering plant
The flowering plants , also known as Angiospermae or Magnoliophyta, are the most diverse group of land plants. Angiosperms are seed-producing plants like the gymnosperms and can be distinguished from the gymnosperms by a series of synapomorphies...
of the genus Rhaponticum
Rhaponticum
Rhaponticum is a Genus of plants in the Asteraceae family.- Description :The Rhaponticum species are perennial herbaceous plants, with simple, rarely branched stem. The leaves are simple to pinnatifid. The inflorescence is on the apex of the stem...
, belonging to the Asteraceae
Asteraceae
The Asteraceae or Compositae , is an exceedingly large and widespread family of vascular plants. The group has more than 22,750 currently accepted species, spread across 1620 genera and 12 subfamilies...
family.
Description
The biological form of Rhaponticum scariosum is hemicryptophyte scaposeGlossary of botanical terms
Many of the terms used in Wikipedia glossaries are already defined and explained within Wikipedia itself. However, lists like the following indicate where new articles need to be written and are also useful for looking up and comparing large numbers of terms together.This glossary is incomplete;...
, as its overwintering buds are situated just below the soil surface and the floral axis is more or less erect with a few leaves.
Rhaponticum scariosum reaches on average 30–150 cm (11.8–59.1 ) in height. The strong, thick, upright stem is leafy and hairy, woolly-tomentose
Tomentose
Tomentose is a term used to describe plant hairs that are flattened and matted, forming a woolly coating known as tomentum. Often the hairs are silver or gray-colored...
and usually has only one inflorescence. The leaves are green, while its underside is white-tomentose
Tomentose
Tomentose is a term used to describe plant hairs that are flattened and matted, forming a woolly coating known as tomentum. Often the hairs are silver or gray-colored...
, with irregularly toothed edges. The basal leaves are heart-shaped and petiolated, about 30–40 cm (11.8–15.7 ) long, the upper leaves are smaller, lanceolate, about 10–22 cm (3.9–8.7 ) long. The flower heads are pink to purple, spherical and very large (about 6–7 cm (2.4–2.8 ) in diameter). The bracts are brownish and scarious. The flowering period extends from June to August.The flowers are hermaphroditic
Hermaphrodite
In biology, a hermaphrodite is an organism that has reproductive organs normally associated with both male and female sexes.Many taxonomic groups of animals do not have separate sexes. In these groups, hermaphroditism is a normal condition, enabling a form of sexual reproduction in which both...
and are pollinated by insects. The fruits are brown achenes.
Distribution
This quite rare plant occurs in ItalyItaly
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
and Slovenia
Slovenia
Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
.
Habitat
It grows in sub-alpine and alpine meadows, stony slopes and thickets. This plant prefers slightly moist and mostly calcareous soils, at altitudes from 750 to 2500 meters.Synonyms
- Centaurea rhapontica L., Sp. Pl. 2: 915. 1753.
- Centaurea scariosa (Lam.) Rouy, Fl. France 9: 114. 1905.
- Leuzea rhapontica (L.) HolubHolubHolub is a surname of Czech origin . It may refer to:* Allen I. Holub, computer scientist* Beata Holub, Polish high jumper* Emil Holub , Czech doctor, explorer, cartographer, and ethnographer in Africa* E. J...
, Folia Geobot. Phytotax. (Praha) 8:392. 1973. - Rhapontica rhapontica Hill, Hort. Kew. 69. 1768, nom. illeg.
- Rhaponticum rhaponticum (L.) Voss, Vilm. Blumengärtn., ed. 3. 1: 554. 1894, nom. illeg.
- Serratula rhapontica (L.) DC., Fl. Franc. (Candolle & Lamarck), ed. 3. 4: 87. 1805.
- Stemmacantha rhapontica (L.) Dittrich, Candollea 39(1): 49. 1984.
- Rhaponticum scariosum subsp. lamarckii (Dittrich) Greuter, Willdenowia 33(1): 61. 2003.
- Stemmacantha rhapontica subsp. lamarckii Dittrich, Candollea 39: 49. 1984, nom. illeg.