Limonium cornarianum
1.Limonium cornarianum Kypriotakis & Artelari (1998: 143) (Fig. 42)
Type:-GREECE. Crete: Kriti island, Nomos Lasithiou, Ep. Sitias: Moni Kapsa, on calcareous maritime rocks, 35° 01´ N, 26° 03´ E, 20 September 1994, Kypriotakis 8534 (holotype UPA).
Description:-Plant perennial, glabrous, forming a sub-shrub 15-45 cm tall, with several erect to ascending stems and a robust tap-root. Caudices 9-20 mm long, branched, densely spirally leafy in the upper half; living leaves in rosettes at apices. Leaves fleshy, glaucous, flat, slightly verrucate to rugose, 20-65 mm long and 4-10 mm broad, narrowly oblanceolate-spathulate, apex obtuse to acute, sometimes mucronate, retuse, margin revolute, with one central nerve, only sometimes with two lateral nerves, gradually tapering into the petiole. Stems glaucous, 8-40 cm long, slightly flexuous, verrucate to rugose, branching begins above lower third of the stems. Inflorescence paniculate or rhombic to trullate in outline. Sterile branches absent or only 1-3 per stem, 10-40 mm long, straight, unbranched. Fertile branches 3-12 cm long, straight to slightly curved, directed obliquely upwards, forming branching angles of 45°- 60°, loosely branched. Spikes 1-5 cm long, straight to slightly curved, directed obliquely upwards. Spikelets 4.5-6.4 mm long, composed of 1-3 flowers, remotely to densely arranged with 2-5 per cm; mainly distichous. Outer bract 1.5-2.2 mm long and 1.8-2.1 mm broad, triangular-ovate, acute; bract margin broadly membranous; central part slightly fleshy, acuminate; sometimes slightly keeled on the back. Middle bract membranous, 1.6-2.5 mm long and 1.2-1.8 mm broad, oblong-elliptic, rounded. Inner bract 3.8-5.2 mm long and 3.2-3.9 mm broad, obovate, rounded; bract margin more or less narrowly membranous; central part fleshy, 3.5-4.2 mm long and 2.0-2.5 mm broad, oblong to oblong-obovate, acuminate, forming a triangular tip, 0.5-0.8 mm long, not reaching the upper margin. Calyx 3.5-4.8 mm long, exceeding the inner bract by c. 1.0 mm; calyx tube sparsely long hairy, with 5 ribs ending at the base of lobes; calyx lobes c. 0.6 × 0.9 mm, semi-elliptic. Corolla pale violet, diameter 6-7mm.
Chromosome number:-2n = 43 (Erben Li-1727, unpubl.).
Distribution:-Confined to southeast Crete, between Ierapetra and Moni Kapsa gorge (Fig. 92F).
Habitat:-Calcareous and marly rocky coast, as well as gorge cliffs near the sea.
Taxonomic remarks:-L. cornarianum is similar to L. hierapetrae, from which it differs by having smaller leaves and shorter spikelets and calyces.
Type:-GREECE. Crete: Kriti island, Nomos Lasithiou, Ep. Sitias: Moni Kapsa, on calcareous maritime rocks, 35° 01´ N, 26° 03´ E, 20 September 1994, Kypriotakis 8534 (holotype UPA).
Description:-Plant perennial, glabrous, forming a sub-shrub 15-45 cm tall, with several erect to ascending stems and a robust tap-root. Caudices 9-20 mm long, branched, densely spirally leafy in the upper half; living leaves in rosettes at apices. Leaves fleshy, glaucous, flat, slightly verrucate to rugose, 20-65 mm long and 4-10 mm broad, narrowly oblanceolate-spathulate, apex obtuse to acute, sometimes mucronate, retuse, margin revolute, with one central nerve, only sometimes with two lateral nerves, gradually tapering into the petiole. Stems glaucous, 8-40 cm long, slightly flexuous, verrucate to rugose, branching begins above lower third of the stems. Inflorescence paniculate or rhombic to trullate in outline. Sterile branches absent or only 1-3 per stem, 10-40 mm long, straight, unbranched. Fertile branches 3-12 cm long, straight to slightly curved, directed obliquely upwards, forming branching angles of 45°- 60°, loosely branched. Spikes 1-5 cm long, straight to slightly curved, directed obliquely upwards. Spikelets 4.5-6.4 mm long, composed of 1-3 flowers, remotely to densely arranged with 2-5 per cm; mainly distichous. Outer bract 1.5-2.2 mm long and 1.8-2.1 mm broad, triangular-ovate, acute; bract margin broadly membranous; central part slightly fleshy, acuminate; sometimes slightly keeled on the back. Middle bract membranous, 1.6-2.5 mm long and 1.2-1.8 mm broad, oblong-elliptic, rounded. Inner bract 3.8-5.2 mm long and 3.2-3.9 mm broad, obovate, rounded; bract margin more or less narrowly membranous; central part fleshy, 3.5-4.2 mm long and 2.0-2.5 mm broad, oblong to oblong-obovate, acuminate, forming a triangular tip, 0.5-0.8 mm long, not reaching the upper margin. Calyx 3.5-4.8 mm long, exceeding the inner bract by c. 1.0 mm; calyx tube sparsely long hairy, with 5 ribs ending at the base of lobes; calyx lobes c. 0.6 × 0.9 mm, semi-elliptic. Corolla pale violet, diameter 6-7mm.
Chromosome number:-2n = 43 (Erben Li-1727, unpubl.).
Distribution:-Confined to southeast Crete, between Ierapetra and Moni Kapsa gorge (Fig. 92F).
Habitat:-Calcareous and marly rocky coast, as well as gorge cliffs near the sea.
Taxonomic remarks:-L. cornarianum is similar to L. hierapetrae, from which it differs by having smaller leaves and shorter spikelets and calyces.
FIGURE 42. Limonium cornarianum Kypriotakis & Artelari. A) Habit; B) Spikelet; C) Outer bract; D) Middle bract; E) Inner bract; Calyx; G) Calyx lobes; H) Leaves. (Drawn from “Creta, Kalo Nero, Brullo & Giusso s.n., CAT, Herb. Erben”).