Santolina

Santolina is a genus of flowering plants in the family Asteraceae, native to the Mediterranean region. Between five and 24 species are accepted by different authorities.

The species are small evergreen shrubs growing to 10-60 cm tall. The leaves are simple and minute in some species, or pinnate, finely divided in other species, and often densely silvery hairy. The flowers are yellow, produced in dense globose capitulae (flowerheads) 1-2 cm diameter on top of slender stems held 10-25 cm above the foliage.

Santolina species are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species including Bucculatrix santolinella (feeds exclusively on S. chamaecyparissus) and the Coleophora case-bearers C. albicella (recorded on S. chamaecyparissus), C. involucrella (feeds exclusively on Santolina spp) and C. santolinella (feeds exclusively on S. chamaecyparissus).

Selected species

• Santolina adscensionis Maire
• Santolina africana Jord. & Fourr.
• Santolina chamaecyparissus L.
• Santolina elegans DC.
• Santolina oblongifolia Boiss.
• Santolina rosmarinifolia L.
• Santolina viscosa Lag.

Source: E+M, UniProt

References

External links

• Flora Europaea: Santolina