Acanthus-mollis_5

Description:

Acanthus mollis L., syn.: Acanthus longifolius Poir.Bear's Breeches, Oyster Plant, DE: BrenklauSlo.: akant, deaDat.: April 26. 2016Lat.: 35.41896 Long.: 23.93851Code: Bot_951/2016_DSC9975Habitat: mountain ravine, north aspect, mostly in shade, skeletal ground, elevation 165 m (540 feet); average precipitations about 1.000 mm/year, average temperature about 10-12 deg C, Mediterranean phytogeographical region. Substratum: soil.Place: Botanic Park of Crete, south of Fournes, close to the road from Chania town to Omalos plateau, Northwest Crete, Greece EC.Comment: Acanthus mollis is a famous plant. Ancient Greek architects admired the plant and used the shape of their beautiful leaves as a motive in design of heads of the famous Corinthian columns, which are a key element in Greek ancient architecture admired for millennia.Indeed the attractive plant with large pinnately-lobed ground leaves and stout, over 1 m tall inflorescences, with individual whitish-pink-violet flowers of unusual shape up to 5 cm long and spiny bracts, makes a strong impression. No wonder; it is often used in horticulture in spite of the fact that is can be also an unpleasantly invasive species. It grows in the whole Mediterranean region. Ref.:(1) M. Blamey, C. Grey-Wilson, Wild Flowers of the Mediterranean, A & C Black, London (2005), p 420.(2) V. Papiomytoglou, Wildblumen aus Griechenland, Mediterraneo Editions, 2006, p18.(3) I. Schnfelder, P. Schnfelder, Kosmos Atlas Mittelmeer- und Kanarenflora, Kosmos, (2002), p 200.