Linaria repens

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Linaria repens
LINARIA REPENS - GENTO - IB-911 (Linaria estriada).jpg
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Lamiales
Family: Plantaginaceae
Genus: Linaria
Species:
L. repens
Binomial name
Linaria repens
Synonyms
  • Linaria estriada

Linaria repens, also known as pale toadflax or creeping toadflax in Europe and as striped toadflax in the US, is an herbaceous plant in the family Plantaginaceae, native to Europe. [1]

Contents

Description

Linaria repens is a short-statured herb (maximum 80 cm), spreading by rhizomes. Upper flower petals are pale with purple veins. Lower petals are pale purple-white, usually with a yellow centre. Its appearance is similar to Linaria purpurea , and the flowers closely resemble Cymbalaria muralis so care must be taken in identification. [2] [3]

It may be poisonous. [3]

Habitat and distribution

This species is found in stony wasteground, along walls, in arable situations and along railways. It grows to a maximum altitude just over 2300 metres. [2] [3] [4]

It is found across western Europe and has been introduced to the east coast of the United States. [5]

In the United Kingdom, L. repens is theorised to be an archaeophyte, i.e. introduced before 1492. [4] It is seldom found in the east of England or in Ireland.

Etymology

The genus Linaria is named for the similarity of the plants' foliage to Linum (flax). The species epithet repens is Latin for 'creeping', referring to the growth habit of the plants. The 'pale' in the English common name refers to the colour of the flowers, in comparison with related species, and 'toadflax' is thought to refer to the plants' historical use to treat bubonic plague, a false link having been drawn at some point between the words 'bubo' and Bufo , which is Latin for toad. [6] [7]

Related Research Articles

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<i>Nigella damascena</i> Species of flowering plant in the buttercup family Ranunculaceae

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<i>Saxifraga</i> Genus of flowering plants in the family Saxifragaceae (saxifrages)

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<i>Lavandula angustifolia</i> Species of plant

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<i>Linaria vulgaris</i> Species of plant

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<i>Campanula glomerata</i> Species of plant

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<i>Sambucus nigra</i> Species of flowering plant in the moschatel family Adoxaceae

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<i>Nuttallanthus canadensis</i> Species of flowering plant

Nuttallanthus canadensis, the blue toadflax, Canada toadflax, or old-field toadflax, is a species of Nuttallanthus in the family Plantaginaceae, native to eastern North America from Ontario east to Nova Scotia and south to Texas and Florida.

<i>Hylotelephium spectabile</i> Species of succulent

Hylotelephium spectabile is a species of flowering plant in the stonecrop family Crassulaceae, native to China and Korea. Its common names include showy stonecrop, iceplant, and butterfly stonecrop.

<i>Geranium pratense</i> Species of flowering plant

Geranium pratense, the meadow crane's-bill or meadow geranium, is a species of flowering plant in the family Geraniaceae, native to Europe and Asia. Forming a clump roughly 1 m (3.3 ft) tall and broad, it is a herbaceous perennial with hairy stems and lax saucer-shaped blooms of pale violet. It is extremely hardy to at least −20 °C (−4 °F), reflecting its origins in the Altai Mountains of central Asia.

<i>Gypsophila repens</i> Species of flowering plant

Gypsophila repens, the alpine gypsophila or creeping baby's breath, is a species of flowering plant in the family Caryophyllaceae, native to the mountains of central and southern Europe, where it grows on dry, chalky slopes. The Latin name literally means "creeping chalk-lover". It is a prostrate, mat-forming herbaceous perennial, growing around 20 cm (8 in) tall by 30–50 cm (12–20 in) wide. For much of the summer it bears masses of star-shaped flowers which may be white, lilac or light purple, in loose panicles.

<i>Crocus tommasinianus</i> Species of flowering plant

Crocus tommasinianus, the woodland crocus, early crocus, or Tommasini's crocus, was named after the botanist Muzio G. Spirito de Tommasini (1794-1879). It is native to Bulgaria, Hungary, Albania, and the former Yugoslavia. It is often referred to as the early or snow crocus, but these terms are shared with several other species, although C. tommasinianus is amongst the first to bloom. Multiple plants are often called tommies in the horticultural trade.

<i>Linaria maroccana</i> Species of flowering plant

Linaria maroccana is a species of flowering plant in the plantain family known by the common names Moroccan toadflax and annual toadflax. It is native to Morocco, but it can be found elsewhere growing wild as an introduced species, such as California. It is a readily available ornamental plant for the flower garden. This is an annual herb growing erect to approach a maximum height of 50 cm (20 in), its stem with linear leaves 2–4 cm (0.8–1.6 in) long. The inflorescence is a raceme of flowers occupying the top of the stem. At the base of each flower is a calyx with five narrow, pointed lobes. The flower is 2–4 cm (0.8–1.6 in) long with five lobes arranged into two lips with a spur at the end. The flower is often purple in color with white near the throat, but flowers of many different colors are bred for the garden. Dwarf cultivars are also available.

<i>Linaria purpurea</i> Species of flowering plant

Linaria purpurea is a species of flowering plant in the plantain family known by the common name purple toadflax.

Iris dolichosiphon is a plant species in the genus Iris, it is also in the subgenus Iris and in the section Pseudoregelia. It is a rhizomatous perennial, from China and Bhutan. It has long, thin dark green leaves, very short stem, and dark blue, purple, or violet flowers. That are mottled with white. It has thick white/orange beards. It has one subspecies, Iris dolichosiphon subsp. orientalis, from China, India and Burma. It has similar flowers. They are cultivated as ornamental plants in temperate regions

Iris sikkimensis is a plant species in the genus Iris, it is also in the subgenus Iris and in the section Pseudoregelia. It is a rhizomatous perennial, from Sikkim. It has pale green or light green thin leaves, slender stem, 2 or 3 lilac or purple flowers, with a white beard with orange tips. It is thought to be a hybrid of Iris hookeriana and Iris kumaonensis.

<i>Chaenorhinum minus</i> Species of flowering plant

Chaenorhinum minus, also known as small toadflax in Europe and dwarf snapdragon in the US and Canada, is a very diminutive member of the plant family Plantaginaceae. It is native to continental Europe.

References

  1. "Linaria repens | creeping toadflax/RHS Gardening". rhs.org.uk. Retrieved 2019-06-11.
  2. 1 2 "Pale Toadflax". NatureSpot. Retrieved 2019-06-11.
  3. 1 2 3 "Linaria repens - Linaire striée - Génial Végétal". genialvegetal.net. Retrieved 2019-06-11.
  4. 1 2 "Linaria repens | Online Atlas of the British and Irish Flora". brc.ac.uk. Retrieved 2019-06-11.
  5. "USDA Plant Profile for Linaria repens (striped toadflax)". plants.usda.gov. Retrieved 2019-06-11.
  6. "Missouri Botanical Garden - A Grammatical Dictionary of Botanical Latin". mobot.org. Retrieved 2019-06-11.
  7. Folk-Etymology. Ardent Media. p. 396. Retrieved 2019-06-11.