SILENE FLAVESCENS subsp. DICTAEA

Family:- CARYOPHYLLACEAE/Sect. SIPHONOMORPHA

Common Names:- None

Synonyms:- None

Meaning:- Silene (Gr) A name used by the Greek philosopher Theophrastus for

catchfly.

Flavescens (L) Pale yellow, turning yellow.

Dictaea (L) From the Dikti mountains E Crete.

Comment:- The following description refers to subsp. thessalonica.

Subsp. dictaea is a dwarf, compact form endemic to E Crete.

General Description;- Caespitose, somewhat woody-based perennial.

Stems:-

1) 15-50 cm tall, several, erect, slender, with viscid sections above.

Leaves:-

1) Basal, spathulate, short-pubescent.

2) Cauline, small, linear.

Flowers:-

1) Solitary or in reduced dichasia.

2) Calyx 8-11 mm, fusiform at anthesis, ellipsoid in fruit, 10-veined, glandular- and

eglandular-pubescent.

3) Petal-limb, 3-6 mm, shortly bilobed, greenish-yellow above, greenish or reddish

beneath.

4) Anthophore short, pubescent.

Fruit:-

1) Capsule, erect, narrowly ellipsoid, equalling or slightly exceeding the calyx.

2) Seeds 0.8-1.0 mm, greyish-brown, obtusely tuberculate.

Key features:-

1) Calyces either all glandular- or all eglandular-pubescent.

2) Capsule strictly erect.

Habitat:- Calcareous cliff crevices, rocky outcrops and stone walls of buildings, (0-)

300-1500(-2000) m.

Distribution:- Endemic to the Dikti mountains E Crete, Rare.

Flowering time:- June-July,sometimes later.

Photo by:- Manolis Afrathianakis