''Favratia zoysii'', known commonly as Zois' bellflower, Zoysi's harebell, or crimped bellflower, is the sole member of the genus ''Favratia'', closely related to '' Campanula '' (bellflowers).

Distribution and habitat

The plant is endemic to

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

, northern

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

(

Friuli–Venezia Giulia (man), it, Friulana (woman), it, Giuliano (man), it, Giuliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_t ...

and

Veneto Veneto (, ; vec, Vèneto ) or Venetia is one of the 20 regions of Italy. Its population is about five million, ranking fourth in Italy. The region's capital is Venice while the biggest city is Verona. Veneto was part of the Roman Empire unt ...

), and

Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...

. It grows most readily in

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

crevices in the Julian,

Kamnik–Savinja Alps The Kamnik–Savinja Alps ( sl, Kamniško-Savinjske Alpe) are a mountain range of the Southern Limestone Alps. They lie in northern Slovenia, except for the northernmost part, which lies in Austria. The western part of the range was named the Ka ...

and the Peca Mountain, as well as in the dolomitic

Alps The Alps () ; german: Alpen ; it, Alpi ; rm, Alps ; sl, Alpe . are the highest and most extensive mountain range system that lies entirely in Europe, stretching approximately across seven Alpine countries (from west to east): France, Sw ...

of Italy and Austria. A white-flowered form of ''C. zoysii'', called ''Lismore Ice'' was cultured from seeds harvested in the Julian Alps. The plant is much more compact in growth than its purple form. It is also slower growing and has smaller leaves, the tips of which are yellow. ''Favratia zoysii'' can survive in temperatures as low as . Garden pests include

slug Slug, or land slug, is a common name for any apparently shell-less terrestrial gastropod mollusc. The word ''slug'' is also often used as part of the common name of any gastropod mollusc that has no shell, a very reduced shell, or only a smal ...

s and

snail A snail is, in loose terms, a shelled gastropod. The name is most often applied to land snails, terrestrial pulmonate gastropod molluscs. However, the common name ''snail'' is also used for most of the members of the molluscan class Gastro ...

Description

The plant tends to grow low, reaching anywhere from in height, though some plants may grow as tall as . Tufts (or "cushions") of the plant tend to creep outward as it grows. Seedlings require two years to grow to flower.

Flowers

The genus is unique among its family of bellflowers. The mouth of ''F. zoysiis bell-shaped flower narrows, ending in a five-pointed star, while the flowers of ''Campanula'' species are likewise bell-shaped, but open. (The "pinched" shape of these flowers nonetheless manages to allow insects inside for pollination.) The flowers are arranged one to three for each stem. The plant's pale

sky blue Sky blue is a shade of light blue comparable to that of a clear daytime sky. The term (as "sky blew") is attested from 1681. A 1585 translation of Nicolas de Nicolay's 1576 ''Les navigations, peregrinations et voyages faicts en la Turquie'' in ...

- to

lavender ''Lavandula'' (common name lavender) is a genus of 47 known species of flowering plants in the mint family, Lamiaceae. It is native to the Old World and is found in Cape Verde and the Canary Islands, and from Europe across to northern and easte ...

-colored flowers bloom in June over a three- to four-week period.

Leaves

Leaves are crowded at the root, stalked,

ovate Ovate may refer to: *Ovate (egg-shaped) leaves, tepals, or other botanical parts *Ovate, a type of prehistoric stone hand axe *Ovates, one of three ranks of membership in the Welsh Gorsedd *Vates In modern English, the nouns vates () and ovat ...

and blunt; stem leaves are

obovate The following is a list of terms which are used to describe leaf morphology in the description and taxonomy of plants. Leaves may be simple (a single leaf blade or lamina) or compound (with several leaflets). The edge of the leaf may be regular o ...

, lance-shaped and linear.

Cultural significance

''Favratia zoysii'' is held in high regard in Slovenia. It is considered a symbol of the Slovene Alps, and was called "the true daughter of the Slovene mountains" by the renowned botanist

Viktor Petkovšek The name Victor or Viktor may refer to: * Victor (name), including a list of people with the given name, mononym, or surname Arts and entertainment Film * ''Victor'' (1951 film), a French drama film * ''Victor'' (1993 film), a French shor ...

(1908–1994). It is the symbol of the oldest (and the only one in the natural environment)

alpine garden An alpine garden (or alpinarium, alpinum) is a domestic or botanical garden, or more often a part of a larger garden, specializing in the collection and cultivation of alpine plants growing naturally at high altitudes around the world, such as in ...

in Slovenia,

Alpinum Juliana This list of Latin and Greek words commonly used in systematic names is intended to help those unfamiliar with classical languages to understand and remember the scientific names of organisms. The binomial nomenclature used for animals and plants i ...

, established in 1926. ''Favratia zoysii'' is highly esteemed as an ornamental plant in

rock gardens 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 ...

. The September 1905 issue of ''

Gardeners' Chronicle ''The Gardeners' Chronicle'' was a British horticulture periodical. It lasted as a title in its own right for nearly 150 years and is still extant as part of the magazine '' Horticulture Week''. History Founded in 1841 by the horticulturists Jose ...

'' praises ''F. zoysii'' as "choicest and most distinct ... of a genus comprising flowers of the greatest beauty and of the highest merit in the garden". The plant was named by the botanist

Franz Xaver von Wulfen Franz Xaver Freiherr von Wulfen (5 November 1728 – 17 March 1805) was an Austrian botanist, zoologist, mineralogist, alpinist, and Jesuit priest. He is credited with discovering the flowering plants ''Wulfenia carinthiaca'', ''Saxifraga mo ...

(1728–1805) in honor of its discoverer, the botanist

Karl von Zois Karl von Zois zu Laibach (18 November 1756 – 29 October 1799) was a Carniolan amateur botanist and plant collector. Von Zois was described as a "country gentleman". He is best known today as the namesake of zoysiagrass, which was named by Car ...

(1756–1799), who introduced it to him. It was first described by

Nikolaus Joseph von Jacquin Nikolaus Joseph Freiherr von Jacquin (16 February 172726 October 1817) was a scientist who studied medicine, chemistry and botany. Biography Born in Leiden in the Netherlands, he studied medicine at Leiden University, then moved first to P ...

in 1789.

References

;Notes ;References {{Taxonbar, from1=Q16054305, from2=Q15602121, from3=Q218454 Monotypic Campanulaceae genera Flora of Slovenia Flora of Austria Flora of Italy Campanuloideae