Aquilegia bertolonii, common name Bertoloni columbine or Bertoloni's columbine,[3][4] is a perennial species of flowering plant in the family Ranunculaceae, native to Italy, southern France, and Slovenia.[1]
| Aquilegia bertolonii | |
|---|---|
| |
| A. bertolonii flower, Mont Ventoux, France | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Order: | Ranunculales |
| Family: | Ranunculaceae |
| Genus: | Aquilegia |
| Species: | A. bertolonii
|
| Binomial name | |
| Aquilegia bertolonii | |
| Synonyms[2] | |
|
List
| |
Description
editThis is a dwarf species, growing to 30 cm (12 in) in height. In early summer each erect stem produces up to four spurred, blue-purple flowers.[5]
Taxonomy
editAquilegia bertolonii is most closely related to Aquilegia einseleana, Einsele's columbine. The two species are estimated to have diverged from each other in the Pliocene around 1.23 million years ago, and form a sister clade to one containing the other European and some North and East Asian species of Aquilegia, from which they diverged approximately 2.5 million years ago.[6]
Etymology
editThe specific name bertolonii honours the Italian botanist Antonio Bertoloni (1775–1869).[4] When first describing this species, Heinrich Wilhelm Schott noted that Bertoloni had classified a specimen as Aquilegia pyrenaica, but Schott considered this specimen to be too different for the identification to hold, instead describing it as a new species with Bertoloni's name.[7]
Distribution and habitat
editAquilegia bertolonii is native to the northwestern Apennine Mountains in Italy,[2] also being found in southern France and three disjunct areas in the Slovenian Alps.[1] It grows on cliffs or limestone areas, steep slopes, rocky areas, stabilised screes and woodlands.[1]
Conservation
editAlthough listed as a Least Concern species overall by the IUCN Red List, Aquilegia bertolonii is protected by national legislation in France and by regional legislation in Italy, and is listed as Vulnerable in Italy and Rare in Slovenia.[1]
Cultivation
editIn cultivation this dwarf columbine is a useful subject for the rockery or alpine garden. It has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.[3]
References
edit- ^ a b c d e Buord, S.; Gargano, D.; Gigot, G.; Jogan, N.; Montagnani, C. (2011). "Aquilegia bertolonii". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2011: e.T161950A5518331. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2011-1.RLTS.T161950A5518331.en. Retrieved 25 October 2024.
- ^ a b "Aquilegia bertolonii Schott". Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 25 October 2024.
- ^ a b "RHS Plant Selector - Aquilegia bertolonii". Retrieved 28 May 2013.
- ^ a b "Bertoloni's Columbine (Aquilegia bertolonii)". National Gardening Association. Retrieved 25 October 2024.
- ^ RHS A-Z encyclopedia of garden plants. United Kingdom: Dorling Kindersley. 2008. p. 1136. ISBN 1405332964.
- ^ Fior, Simone; Li, Mingai; Oxelman, Bengt; Viola, Roberto; Hodges, Scott A.; Ometto, Lino; Varotto, Claudio (2013). "Spatiotemporal reconstruction of the Aquilegia rapid radiation through next-generation sequencing of rapidly evolving cpDNA regions". New Phytologist. 198 (2): 579–592. doi:10.1111/nph.12163. PMID 23379348.
- ^ Schott, Heinrich Wilhelm (1853). "Ueber Aquilegien". Verhandlungen des Zoologisch-Botanischen Vereins in Wien. 3: 125–130.