Ononis natrix
Ononis natrix
Ssp hispanica: Ölemez; Ssp natrix: Öküzçanı
Small shrub, with numerous erect, ascending or prostrate stems, 15-100 cm, ± glandular-hirsute, viscid. Leaves mainly trifoliolate, upper leaves often unifoliolate; leaflets suborbicular, ovate, oblong to linear, denticulate. Peduncle 5-20 mm, awned, 1-flowered. Calyx campanulate, 5-10 mm, parted to 2/3-3/4 into linear to linear-lanceolate 3-nerved lobes. Flowers forming terminal leafy racemes. Corolla yellow, 8-20 mm, standard often striped with red. Legume linear, villous, 10-20 x 3-4 mm, 6-9-ovuled. Seeds orbicular, tubercled. A most polymorphic species, divisible in Turkey into 3 subspecies:
1. Stems glabrous or with a short indumentum ......................subsp. ramosissima .........W. Medit. area, Karpathos, Syria, Palestine. Medit. element.
1. Stems with a dense indumentum of long glandular and eglandular hairs
2. Calyx densely covered with short glandular and long eglandular hairs; corolla 12-20 mm ................subsp. natrix.....Throughout the Mediterranean area, from Portugal to W. Syria. Medit. element.
2. Calyx covered with short glandular hairs, eglandular hairs scarce or wanting; corolla 6-11 mm ...subsp. hispanica .......W. Medit. area, Aegean islands. Medit. element.
