Centaurium pulchellum (Swartz) Druce

Spice Flowers Inflorescence

Family: GENTIANACEAE

Genus: Centaurium

Sinònims: Centaurium pulchellum (Swartz) Druce subsp. pulchellum

Catalan common name: Centaura.

Province distribution: Balearic Islands. Barcelona. Castelló. Girona. Lleida. Tarragona. València.

Distribution in the islands: Mallorca. Menorca. Ibiza. Formentera.

General distribution (Phytogeography): Holoartica

IUCN Category: LCLeast concern

Flowering time: JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec

Life-forms: Terophyte.

Habitats: Beaches and dunes, sandy soils. Rocky coastlines. Therophytic calicole fields. Therophytic silicolous fields. Therophytics communities.

Characteristics: An erect herb; branched almost from the base, with opposed well lanceolate leaves. It forms pale pink flowers usually white-tinged at the centre, in the shape of five-pointed star. The inflorescence is quite lax. It grows in terophitic meadows from the clearings in garrigues (Mediterranean woodland). It flowers at the end of spring heralding the heat of summer. It can be mistaken for Centaurium tenuiflorum, but the latter has darker flowers, it branches at the top and has a lot of flowers, but it can live in the same places.