''Catananche'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

of flowering plants in the family

Asteraceae The family Asteraceae, alternatively Compositae, consists of over 32,000 known species of flowering plants in over 1,900 genera within the order Asterales. Commonly referred to as the aster, daisy, composite, or sunflower family, Compositae w ...

. It is

native Native may refer to: People * Jus soli, citizenship by right of birth * Indigenous peoples, peoples with a set of specific rights based on their historical ties to a particular territory ** Native Americans (disambiguation) In arts and entert ...

to dry meadows in the Mediterranean region. They are cultivated for their cornflower-like blooms appearing in summer, in shades of blue, yellow and white. They are suitable for a sunny border, and for dried flower arrangements. ; Species * '' Catananche arenaria'' Coss. & Durieu - Libya, Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco, Western Sahara, Mauritania * '' Catananche caerulea'' L. - Spain, Portugal, France, Italy, Libya, Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco * '' Catananche caespitosa'' Desf. - Algeria, Morocco * ''

Catananche lutea ''Catananche lutea'', is a woolly annual plant, in the family Asteraceae, with most leaves in a basal rosette, and some smaller leaves on the stems at the base of the branches. Seated horizontal flowerheads develop early on under the rosette l ...

'' L. - Spain, Portugal, France, Italy, Greece, Macedonia, Turkey, Cyprus, Syria, Lebanon, Palestine, Libya, Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco * '' Catananche montana'' Coss. & Durieu - Algeria, Morocco

Phylogeny

According to recent genetic analyses, the genus ''Catananche'' is related to the genera ''

Hymenonema ''Hymenonema'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Asteraceae endemic to Greece. On each of the single or few stems, the species have one to three flowerheads consisting of yellow or yolk yellow ligulate florets, scaly pappus, greyish, ...

'', ''

Scolymus ''Scolymus'' is a genus of annual, biennial or perennial, herbaceous plants that is assigned to the family Asteraceae, and can be found in Macaronesia, around the Mediterranean, and in the Middle East. All species are spiny, thistle-like in appea ...

'' and ''

Gundelia ''Gundelia'' is a low to high (20–100 cm) thistle-like perennial herbaceous plant with latex, spiny compound inflorescences, reminiscent of teasles and eryngos, that contain cream, yellow, greenish, pink, purple or redish-purple disk flo ...

''. This results in the following relationship tree.

References

* Cichorieae Asteraceae genera {{Cichorieae-stub