''Umbilicus horizontalis'', the horizontal navelwort, is a fleshy perennial

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants th ...

in the family

Crassulaceae The Crassulaceae (from Latin ''crassus'', thick), also known as the stonecrop family or the orpine family, are a diverse family of dicotyledon flowering plants characterized by succulent leaves and a unique form of photosynthesis, known as Crass ...

(in the

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 ...

'' Umbilicus'') native to the

Mediterranean Basin In biogeography, the Mediterranean Basin (; also known as the Mediterranean Region or sometimes Mediterranea) is the region of lands around the Mediterranean Sea that have mostly a Mediterranean climate, with mild to cool, rainy winters and w ...

and

Middle East The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabian Peninsula, Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Anatolia, Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Pro ...

, from the

Azores ) , motto =( en, "Rather die free than subjected in peace") , anthem= ( en, "Anthem of the Azores") , image_map=Locator_map_of_Azores_in_EU.svg , map_alt=Location of the Azores within the European Union , map_caption=Location of the Azores wi ...

in the west to

Oman Oman ( ; ar, عُمَان ' ), officially the Sultanate of Oman ( ar, سلْطنةُ عُمان ), is an Arabian country located in southwestern Asia. It is situated on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula, and spans the mouth of t ...

in the east in rocky habitats. Horizontal navelwort grows to an average of high. The thickly clustered, bell-shaped flowers are pale green, and grow in a

raceme A raceme ( or ) or racemoid is an unbranched, indeterminate type of inflorescence bearing flowers having short floral stalks along the shoots that bear the flowers. The oldest flowers grow close to the base and new flowers are produced as the s ...

perpendicular to the spike, unlike common navelwort, whose flowers droop (thus the term "horizontal"). The plant often grows on shady walls or in damp rock crevices that are sparse in other plant growth, where its succulent, dark green leaves develop in rosettes that are about wide. Horizontal navelwort is similar to common navelwort in many respects, but is noticeably more succulent.

Literature

* Mediterranean Wild Flowers,

Marjorie Blamey Marjorie Netta Blamey MBE (13 March 1918 – 8 September 2019) was an English painter and illustrator, particularly noted for her botanical illustrations for which she was described as "the finest living botanical illustrator", "the best conte ...

& Christopher Grey-Wilson,

HarperCollinsPublishers HarperCollins Publishers LLC is one of the Big Five English-language publishing companies, alongside Penguin Random House, Simon & Schuster, Hachette, and Macmillan. The company is headquartered in New York City and is a subsidiary of News C ...

, 1993,

References

External links

* http://www.theplantlist.org/tpl1.1/search?q=Umbilicus+horizontalis horizontalis Flora of Lebanon Flora of Malta {{Crassulaceae-stub