Taraxacum holmboei explained

Taraxacum holmboei, the Troödos dandelion, is a rosulate perennial herb, up to 10 cm high. Leaves simple, all in rosette, deeply divided (pinnatifid), with deltoid-acute lobes, glabrous, oblong in outline, 3.5-10 x 8-2.5 cm. Flowers in capitula, with yellow, ligulate florets, flowering May–June (hysteranthous, flowers appearing after leaf development). Fruit a pappose achene.^[1]

Habitat

Open pine forests, roadsides, dry hillsides with open vegetation on igneous rocks at 1100–1950 m altitude.

Distribution

Endemic to Cyprus where it is confined to the Troödos Mountains where it is locally common: Platania, Karvounas, Troodos Square, Almyrolivadho, Khionistra and Prodromos.

Etymology

It is named in honour of the Norwegian botanist Jens Holmboe (1880 – 1943).^[2]

Cytology

The diploid chromosome count is 2n = 12.^[3]

Conservation

It is categorized as vulnerable (VU) by The Red Data Book of the flora of Cyprus.^[4]

External links

• http://www.shutterstock.com/pic-973769/stock-photo-taraxacum-holmboei-wildflower-of-cyprus.html
• http://www.plantbuzz.com/Alpine-L/ATOW/page52.jpg

Notes and References

1. The Endemic Plants of Cyprus, Texts: Takis Ch. Tsintides, Photographs: Laizos Kourtellarides, Cyprus Association of Professional Foresters, Bank of Cyprus Group, Nicosia 1998,
2. Taraxacum holmboei. (2022, September 26). Discover Cyprus. Retrieved March 8, 2023, from https://cyprustravels.org/asterales/taraxacum-holmboei/
3. Taraxacum holmboei | Flora of Cyprus — a dynamic checklist. (n.d.). Retrieved March 8, 2023, from https://www.flora-of-cyprus.eu/cdm_dataportal/taxon/0c8440e6-5d73-4763-9588-097ab2d12952
4. Hand, Ralf. (2013). "The effectiveness of seed-banked material in ex situ cultivation: An example from Cyprus." Flora Mediterranea. 23. 93-103. 10.7320/FlMedit23.093.