''Pentanema hirtum'' is a species of

perennial A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also wide ...

herbaceous Herbaceous plants are vascular plants that have no persistent woody stems above ground. This broad category of plants includes many perennials, and nearly all annuals and biennials. Definitions of "herb" and "herbaceous" The fourth edition of t ...

plant belonging to 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 ...

. The specific Latin name ''hirtum'' refers to the type of hairiness (bristly and rough) of the plant.

Description

''Pentanema hirtum'' reaches a height of . The stem is ascending, simple (unbranched) and cylindrical, the surface is striped and hairy. These plants are covered with stiff hairs, almost bristly and light in color. The underground portion consists of a moderate sized oblique rhizome of a light color. Average size of the rhizome: width , length . All the leaves along the stem (''cauline'') are alternately arranged, irregularly toothed, erect, tomentose on both sides and hairy on the edge. They are usually laminar, leathery and rough. The base is rounded and the apex is obtuse. The average size of the leaves varies from of width to a length of . Lower leaves have an elliptical or elliptical-lanceolate shape and have a thin petiole. Their size is more or less similar to the cauline one. Upper leaves are sessile, ''amplexicaul'' (their base is embracing the stem) and more lanceolate. The

flower A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechani ...

s are hermaphrodite The outer flowers are ligulate, bright yellow and feminine, while the inner ones are tubular, dark yellow and bisexual. The diameter of the flower varies from . The flowering period extends from May through late September. The fruits are glabrous

achene An achene (; ), also sometimes called akene and occasionally achenium or achenocarp, is a type of simple dry fruit produced by many species of flowering plants. Achenes are monocarpellate (formed from one carpel) and indehiscent (they do not ope ...

s with hairy appendages ( pappus).

Distribution

This plant is distributed on

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 ...

Vosges The Vosges ( , ; german: Vogesen ; Franconian and gsw, Vogese) are a range of low mountains in Eastern France, near its border with Germany. Together with the Palatine Forest to the north on the German side of the border, they form a single ...

Jura Mountains The Jura Mountains ( , , , ; french: Massif du Jura; german: Juragebirge; it, Massiccio del Giura, rm, Montagnas da Jura) are a sub-alpine mountain range a short distance north of the Western Alps and mainly demarcate a long part of the Frenc ...

Pyrenees The Pyrenees (; es, Pirineos ; french: Pyrénées ; ca, Pirineu ; eu, Pirinioak ; oc, Pirenèus ; an, Pirineus) is a mountain range straddling the border of France and Spain. It extends nearly from its union with the Cantabrian Mountains to C ...

Carpathian Mountains The Carpathian Mountains or Carpathians () are a range of mountains forming an arc across Central Europe. Roughly long, it is the third-longest European mountain range after the Urals at and the Scandinavian Mountains at . The range stretches ...

, Dinaric Alps, and

Balkan Mountains The Balkan mountain range (, , known locally also as Stara planina) is a mountain range in the eastern part of the Balkan Peninsula in Southeastern Europe. The range is conventionally taken to begin at the peak of Vrashka Chuka on the border betw ...

. In the European plains this plant is widespread in southern France and through the

Balkan Peninsula The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who ...

to the Caucasus and southern Russia.

Habitat

This species prefers dry meadows and pastures of hills and mountains. They can be found up to above sea level.

References

*Pignatti S. – Flora d'Italia (3 vol.) – Edagricole – 1982. vol. III, p. 45

External links

Biolib
{{Taxonbar, from1=Q76999060, from2=Q1383606 hirtum Flora of Europe Flora of the Pyrenees Flora of the Alps Plants described in 1753 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus