RHAMNUS ALATERNUS

Family and Genus:- See- RHAMNACEAE/Sect. ALATERNUS

Common Names:- Alaternus Italian or Mediterranean buckthorn

Homotypic Synonyms:- None

Meaning:- Rhamnus (Gr) Ancient name for various prickly shrubs.

Alaternus (L) Alternating on opposite sides, alternate. every other.

General description:- Nearly glabrous shrub up to 5 m, very variable in habit

Leaves:-

1) (1-)2-6 cm, lanceolate to ovate, acute to obtuse, often mucronate, entire or

remotely denticulate, coriaceous, with inconspicuous lateral. veins, margin

somewhat thickened,

2) Petiole, 1-8 mm.

Flowers:-

1) Inflorescence, dense, more or less pubescent.

2) Bracteoles, ciliolate, usually caducous.

3) Calyx-lobes, lanceolate, acute, yellow.

4) Petals, absent.

5) Male inflorescence, a cylindrical raceme 10-15 mm.

6) Female inflorescence, similar but shorter.

Fruit:-

1) Drupe, 4-6 mm, not fleshy, broadly obovoid to subglobose, 2- or 3-locular,

reddish becoming black.

b) pyrenes 3.

Key features:-

1) Erect, evergreen, unarmed shrub, 1-2(-4) m tall.

2) Flowers, 5-merous, in racemes, or rarely solitary.

3) Leaves, entire or remotely denticulate.

a) blade, 20-40 mm, elliptic-ovate.

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Habitat:- Rocky slopes with dry open shrubby vegetation, scrubland vegetation,

mixed scrub and open woodland. 0-500 (-1100) m. on different substrates.

Distribution:- Almost throughout Greece, mainly in coastal areas, lacking in the far

NE. - Mediterranean region to Crimea, S Anatolia and Cyprus. Fairly rare on Crete

known from a few scattered locations in the west.

Flowering time:- (Feb-) Mar-Apr.

Photos by:- Courtesy of Wiki-Commons