Ulex minor | |
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Scientific classification ![]() | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Clade: | Rosids |
Order: | Fabales |
Family: | Fabaceae |
Subfamily: | Faboideae |
Genus: | Ulex |
Species: | U. minor |
Binomial name | |
Ulex minor | |
Ulex minor, the dwarf furze or dwarf gorse is an evergreen dwarf shrub in the family Fabaceae, native to eastern England, France, Spain and Portugal. It is restricted to lowland heathland habitats.
It normally grows about 30 centimetres (10 in) tall, although in shaded, ungrazed conditions it may reach 1 metre (40 in). It is a low-growing shrub, forming small bushes or often growing mingled with heather. The leaves are limited to scales or small spines, and the shoots are modified into rather soft, green, densely crowded spines, about 1 cm (0.4 in) long.
The flowers are yellow, 1–2 cm (0.4–0.8 in) long, with the typical pea-flower structure; they are produced principally in the late summer and autumn, rarely before July. The fruit is a legume (pod), partly enclosed by the pale brown remnants of the flower.
Due to its relatively soft spines, dwarf furze is readily grazed by livestock and wild herbivores.
The distributions of dwarf furze and its close relative western gorse ( Ulex gallii ) hardly overlap, even in similar habitats.
Ulex is a genus of flowering plants in the family Fabaceae. The genus comprises about 20 species of thorny evergreen shrubs in the subfamily Faboideae of the pea family Fabaceae. The species are native to parts of western Europe and northwest Africa, with the majority of species in Iberia.
Bergerocactus emoryi is a species of cactus, known commonly as the golden-spined cereus, golden snake cactus, velvet cactus or golden club cactus. It is a relatively small cactus, but it can form dense thickets or colonies, with the dense yellow spines giving off a velvety appearance when backlit by the sun. From April to May, yellow, green-tinged flowers emerge, which transform into reddish, globular fruit. This species is native to the California Floristic Province, and is found in northwestern Baja California and a small part of California, in San Diego County and on the southern Channel Islands. Where the Mediterranean climate of the California Floristic Province collides with the subtropical Sonoran Desert near El Rosario, hybrids with two other species of cacti are found. It is the sole member of the monotypic genus Bergerocactus, named after German botanist Alwin Berger.
Ulex europaeus, the gorse, common gorse, furze or whin, is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae, native to the British Isles and Western Europe.
Leocereus is a genus of cactus. Its only species is Leocereus bahiensis, first described by Nathaniel Lord Britton and Joseph Nelson Rose in 1926.
Castanea pumila, commonly known as the Allegheny chinquapin, American chinquapin or dwarf chestnut, is a species of chestnut native to the southeastern United States. The native range is from Massachusetts and New York to Maryland and extreme southern New Jersey and southeast Pennsylvania south to central Florida, west to eastern Texas, and north to southern Missouri and Kentucky. The plant's habitat is dry sandy and rocky uplands and ridges mixed with oak and hickory to 1000 m elevation. It grows best on well-drained soils in full sun or partial shade.
Ulex gallii, the western gorse or dwarf furze is an evergreen shrub in the pea family (Fabaceae), native to the Atlantic coasts of western Europe: southern Scotland, England, Wales, Ireland, the Isle of Man, western France and the northern coast of Spain.
Aiphanes chiribogensis is a species of palm which is endemic to western Ecuador. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests and subtropical or tropical moist montane forests. It is threatened by habitat loss.
The blue korhaan or blue bustard is a species of bird in the family Otididae which is native to South Africa. Its call is a series of frog-like croaks, usually uttered in flight. Its natural habitat is plateau grassland, dry shrubland, arable land and pastureland. Its preferred habitat is one with short grassland and flat topography.
Rhodocactus bahiensis is a species of tree-like cactus that is endemic to the Brazilian state of Bahia. First described as Pereskia bahiensis, it was transferred to Rhodocactus in 2016. Like all species in the genus Rhodocactus, and unlike most cacti, it has persistent leaves. In its native locality, it is used to form hedges.
Rhodocactus stenanthus is a species of cactus that is endemic to Brazil. First described as Pereskia stenantha, it was transferred to Rhodocactus in 2016. Like all species in the genus Rhodocactus, and unlike most cacti, it has persistent leaves. In its native locality, it is sometimes used in hedges.
Lowland heath is a Biodiversity Action Plan habitat as it is a type of ancient wild landscape. Natural England's Environmental Stewardship scheme describes lowland heath as containing dry heath, wet heath and valley mire communities, usually below 250 metres (820 ft) in altitude, on acidic soils and shallow peat, typically comprising heathers, gorses, fine grasses, wild flowers and lichens in a complex mosaic. Heathers and other dwarf shrubs usually account for at least 25% of the ground cover. By contrast, upland heath, which is above 300 metres (980 ft) in altitude, is called moorland, Dartmoor being an example.
Hakea ulicina, commonly known as furze hakea, is a shrub in the family Proteaceae and endemic to Victoria. It has stiff, long, narrow leaves and creamy-white flowers.
Ferocactus latispinus is a species of barrel cactus native to Mexico.
Ilex cornuta, commonly known as Chinese holly or horned holly, is a slow-growing, densely foliaged evergreen shrub in the Aquifoliaceae plant family. It is native to eastern China and Korea and attains a height of about 3 metres (9.8 ft). The leaves are usually 5-spined, between 3.5 cm and 10 cm long, oblong and entire. The fruits are red berries, which are larger than those of the European Holly.
Weinmannia pinnata, commonly known as the bastard briziletto, is a species of tree in the family Cunoniaceae. It is native to Mexico, Central America, South America and the West Indies. It typically grows in wet habitats at high elevations, and is one of the species found in dwarf forests perpetually wreathed in clouds.
Leucadendron coniferum, also known at the dune conebush, is an evergreen, dioecious shrub or small tree of up to 4 m (13 ft) high, that has been assigned to the family Proteaceae. It has a whorl of conspicuous yellow leaves subtending the flowerheads. The flowers can be found in August and September. It grows in sandy soils near the coast of the Western Cape province of South Africa.
Leucospermum gerrardii is an evergreen, mat-forming shrub of mostly about 30 cm (12 in) high and up to 1 m (3.3 ft) in diameter, with branches originating from an underground rootstock. It has narrow leaves, sometimes with three or four teeth near the tip, and prominent, raised, netted to parallel veins. The flower heads are egg-shaped about 5 cm (2 in) in diameter and consist of at first yellow, later orange or scarlet perianths, and long styles reaching far beyond the perianth and together giving the impression of a pincushion. It is assigned to the family Proteaceae. It can be found in South Africa and Eswatini. It mostly flowers between September and November. The species is called dwarf pincushion or soapstone pincushion in English.
Leucospermum secundifolium is a low, evergreen shrub that grows along the ground, the tip of the branches slightly rising, which has been assigned to the family Proteaceae. It has narrowly elliptic leaves with a distinct leafstalk, and few-flowered and very small heads of 1–1½ cm (0.4–0.6 in) across. It is called stalked pincushion in English. The sweetly scented flower heads may be found around early December. It is an endemic species that only grows in a small area of the Western Cape province of South-Africa.
Ulex densus is an evergreen shrub in the family Fabaceae endemic to Portugal.
Ulex argenteus is a species of gorse native to southern Portugal in the Iberian Peninsula.
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