''Acantholimon'' (prickly thrift) is a genus of small flowering plants within the plumbago or leadwort family, Plumbaginaceae. They are distributed from southeastern Europe to central Asia and also in South America, but also cultivated elsewhere in

rock garden A rock garden, also known as a rockery and formerly as a rockwork, is a garden, or more often a part of a garden, with a landscaping framework of rocks, stones, and gravel, with planting appropriate to this setting. Usually these are small A ...

Form

The evergreen

subshrub A subshrub (Latin ''suffrutex'') or dwarf shrub is a short shrub, and is a woody plant. Prostrate shrub is a related term. "Subshrub" is often used interchangeably with "bush".Jackson, Benjamin, Daydon; A Glossary of Botanic Terms with their Der ...

s are generally cushion to mat-forming, with densely tufted shoots bearing mostly awl (long, pointed spike) to needle or grass-like, prickle to spine-tipped hard-textured leaves. They have shortish, simple or branched flower stems which can be loose or dense. The summer-borne flowers are composed of a funnel-shaped

calyx Calyx or calyce (plural "calyces"), from the Latin ''calix'' which itself comes from the Ancient Greek ''κάλυξ'' (''kálux'') meaning "husk" or "pod", may refer to: Biology * Calyx (anatomy), collective name for several cup-like structures ...

, usually with a flared membranous margin, and five spreading petals.

Species

There are over 400 species. Selected species of ''Acantholimon'' include: *''

Acantholimon acerosum ''Acantholimon acerosum'' is a species of plant in the Plumbaginaceae family that is native from Turkey to Northwest Iran. The species are evergreen and sprout flowers June. Acantholimon acerosum grows in light well drained soil that is gri ...

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Acantholimon albertii ''Acantholimon'' (prickly thrift) is a genus of small flowering plants within the plumbago or leadwort family, Plumbaginaceae. They are distributed from southeastern Europe to central Asia and also in South America, but also cultivated elsewhere ...

'' *'' Acantholimon anatolicum'' *''

Acantholimon armenum ''Acantholimon'' (prickly thrift) is a genus of small flowering plants within the plumbago or leadwort family, Plumbaginaceae. They are distributed from southeastern Europe to central Asia and also in South America, but also cultivated else ...

'' *'' Acantholimon artosense'' *''

Acantholimon avenaceum ''Acantholimon'' (prickly thrift) is a genus of small flowering plants within the plumbago or leadwort family, Plumbaginaceae. They are distributed from southeastern Europe to central Asia and also in South America, but also cultivated elsewhere ...

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Acantholimon bashkaleicum ''Acantholimon'' (prickly thrift) is a genus of small flowering plants within the plumbago or leadwort family, Plumbaginaceae. They are distributed from southeastern Europe to central Asia and also in South America, but also cultivated elsewhere ...

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Acantholimon birandii ''Acantholimon'' (prickly thrift) is a genus of small flowering plants within the plumbago or leadwort family, Plumbaginaceae. They are distributed from southeastern Europe to central Asia and also in South America, but also cultivated elsewhere ...

'' *'' Acantholimon calvertii'' *'' Acantholimon capitatum'' *'' Acantholimon davisii'' *'' Acantholimon doganii'' *'' Acantholimon gabrieljaniae'' *'' Acantholimon gillii'' *'' Acantholimon glumaceum'' *'' Acantholimon goeksunicum'' *'' Acantholimon hoshapicum'' *'' Acantholimon ibrahimii'' *'' Acantholimon karamanicum'' *'' Acantholimon koeycegizicum'' *''

Acantholimon kotschyi ''Acantholimon'' (prickly thrift) is a genus of small flowering plants within the plumbago or leadwort family, Plumbaginaceae. They are distributed from southeastern Europe to central Asia and also in South America, but also cultivated else ...

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Acantholimon libanoticum ''Acantholimon libanoticum'' (Lebanese prickly thrift, غملول لبناني) is a plant in the family Plumbaginaceae first described by Pierre Edmond Boissier. It is native to Western Asia from Turkey to Syria and Lebanon Lebanon ( , ar ...

'' *'' Acantholimon riyatguelii'' *'' Acantholimon schemachense'' *'' Acantholimon turcicum'' *''

Acantholimon ulicinum ''Acantholimon ulicinum'' (ulicinum: yoo-lih-SEE-num), also known as the prickly thief, is a species of broadleaf evergreen plants in the family Plumbaginaceae. ''Acantholimon ulicinum'' is around tall and has a spread of . The species is endem ...

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Acantholimon vedicum ''Acantholimon vedicum'', the Vedian prickly thrift, is a species of leadwort that is endemic to central Armenia, and is only found in the Yerevan floristic region, on the limestone massif Erakh between elevations of 900–1,000 m, close t ...

'' *'' Acantholimon venustum'' *''

Acantholimon yildizelicum ''Acantholimon'' (prickly thrift) is a genus of small flowering plants within the plumbago or leadwort family, Plumbaginaceae. They are distributed from southeastern Europe to central Asia and also in South America, but also cultivated else ...

References

Caryophyllales genera Taxa named by Pierre Edmond Boissier {{Caryophyllales-stub