From the book “Taurus Mountains and their Precious Flowers”
What does Endemic Mean?
The word “Endemic” is derived from the Latin word “Endemos”. This word, whose Latin meaning is “Native”, is used in the meaning of “belong to a certain country, region, city or mountain; local and very rare.
A plant may disappear with the changes of climate and natural conditions although it spread in a wide are before. It may also become endemic adapting to the conditions of a region, valley, even an area of a few hundred square meters, with the evolutionary changes it has passed through. This kind of plants are called relict endemic species. Liquidamber orientalis (Anatolian Sweetgum) which grows only within the borders of the province of Muğla in Turkey can be an example for relict endemics. There are even local endemic plants which live only in one archeological site.
Endemic Plant Heritage of Taurus Mountains, Turkey
- Salvia recognita (Puslu şalba)
Salvia recognita is a woody-based perennial that is endemic to central Turkey, typically growing in light shade at the base of cliffs, at elevations of less than 4,000 feet. It has recently been found to contain a low concentration of Salvinorin A.
A mass of divided leaves forms a small to medium basal clump, with leaves ranging in size from 3-4 inches to nearly 1 foot long, with three or more leaflets. The light green leaves are covered with thick hairs, giving it a grayish cast and thick texture, with each leaf blade having a wine-colored petiole. The flowers are cyclamen-pink, growing in whorls, with calyces that are covered in glands and hairs. The flower stalks reach 2–3 feet long, with many whorls of widely spaced flowers.
- Cyclamen pseudibericum (Köstüköpeği)
Cyclamen pseudibericum, the false Iberian cyclamen, is a species of flowering plant in the genus Cyclamen of the family Primulaceae, native to the Amanus or Nur and Anti-Taurus Mountains in southern Turkey. It is an herbaceous, tuberous perennial growing to 12 cm (5 in). It is similar to Cyclamen coum, but with longer petals.
The tuber develops roots from the center below. The leaves are longer than wide, with a hastate or Christmas-tree pattern in green and silver. The spring-blooming flowers with five reflexed, upswept petals, are fragrant and magenta-purple or pink, with a darker blotch and a white zone at the end of the nose (larger than that of C. coum). After flowering, a pod develops on a coiled stem that rests on the ground, releasing its seeds directly on to the soil surface.
- Michauxia tchihatcheffii (Keçibiciği)
M. tchihatcheffii is a perennial grown as a biennial. It has dark-green, lance-shaped leaves and in summer, bears large striking white daisy-like flowers with reflexed petals and prominent centres. It is used in the treatment of wounds in Turkish folk medicine. Recent scientific evaluation has confirmed that these plants possess wound-healing, anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties.
Sources:
- bloem, M. (n.d.).Cyclamen pseudibericum04.jpg. Cyclamen pseudibericum. Retrieved from https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cyclamen_pseudibericum04.jpg.
- Clebsch, Betsy; Barner, Carol D. (2003). The New Book of Salvias. Timber Press. p. 237. ISBN978-0-88192-560-9.
- Journal of Ethnopharmacology2012 Jan 31 Wound healing and anti-inflammatory activities of the Michauxia L’Hérit (Campanulaceae) species native to Turkey. Güvenç A., Akkol E.K., Hürkul M.M., Süntar I. and Keleş H.
- Michauxia tchihatcheffii. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.sarastro-stauden.com/shop/winterharte-stauden/michauxia-felsenglocke/michauxia-tchihatcheffii/.
- RHS A-Z encyclopedia of garden plants. United Kingdom: Dorling Kindersley. 2008. p. 1136. ISBN 1405332964.
- “RHS Plant Selector – Cyclamen pseudibericum”. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
- (n.d.).Michauxia Tchihatcheffii catherine wheel flower care plant varieties & pruning advice. Michauxia tchihatcheffii Catherine wheel flower Care Plant Varieties & Pruning Advice. Retrieved November 12, 2021, from https://www.shootgardening.co.uk/plant/michauxia-tchihatcheffii.