Centaurea yaltirikii

Centaurea yaltirikii

Ssp yaltirikii: Sultan sarıbaşı; Ssp dumanii: Duman sarıbaşı

Perennial herb with a woody rootstock. Stems erect, striate, shortly villose, 30-45 cm long and 1-2 mm in diameter at base, slightly thickened below the capitula, usually simple, but sometimes with 2-4 one-headed branches in the upper part. Leaves lanceolate_oblong, rarely ovate or oblanceolate, green, scabrous and glandular dotted or glabrous, margine entire or sometimes slightly denticulate, mucronate at apex, mucro 0.8-1.0 mm. Basal leaves withered at flowering time; lower stem leaves shortly petiolate, petioles up to 2 cm, lamina 6-9X1.1- 1.6 cm, median and upper leaves sessile or 0.5-1.5 cm asymmetrically decurrent , lamina 2.1-6X1-2.2 cm. Capitula solitary at the end of branches; involucre oblong_globose or ovate, 1-2X 1.4-2.5 cm, base truncate; phyllaries imbricate, glabrous or floccose_tomentose in their upper parts, especially bellow the appendages; outer phyllaries ovate, 6.5-8.5X4.5-5.5 mm, appendages ca 2.0-2.5 mm; median phyllaries lanceolate, 7.5-14.5X4-5 mm, appendages 3-3.2X3.5-4.3 mm; inner phyllaries linear_lanceolate, 15-17X2-3 mm, appendages 1.7-2.7X1.0-2.4 mm; appendages triangular, not totally concealing basal part of phyllaries, not decurrent, brownish, with 3-4 cilia on each side, cilia 2-3 mm long, ending in a slender 2- 4 mm long spinule. Florets yellow, marginal not radiant; corolla-tube glabrous, 17-19 mm long, lobes 5-7 mm, linear; flaments 4-5 mm long; anthers 10-11 mm, style 10-12 mm long, style-shaft 8.5-10 mm long, style branches 2.0-2.5 mm long, hairy at base. Achenes obovoid_oblanceolate, 4.0-4.5X2 mm, glabrous or sparsely pilose, purplish; pappus biseriate, inner series 1.0-1.5 mm long, outer series 6-7 mm long, scabrous_barbellate, brownish. Flowering from May to June.

Endemic