Table 1.
Comparison of the appearance, morphology, and occurrence of three selected subspecies of A. maritima (based on: Szafer, 1946 [71]; Pinto da Silva, 1972 [69]; Lefèbvre, 1974 [76]; Woodell and Dale, 1993 [74]; Abratowska et al., 2012, 2015 [23,47]; Wąsowicz, 2015 [72]).
| Features/Occurrence | Subspecies of A. maritima | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Subsp. Elongata | Subsp. Maritima | Subsp. Halleri | |
| Generative leafless shoot (scape) | A medium-sized plant with a scape that is glabrous or pubescent only at the base, 20–55 cm tall | A small plant with a scape that is densely pubescent, up to 5–25 cm tall | Usually a smaller, more delicately built plant than that of subsp. elongata; with a scape that is wholly glabrous, a little shorter, usually 10–25 cm tall |
| Leaves | Slightly acicular, up to 20 cm long, with the edge relatively densely and shortly ciliated at full length; leaves also pubescent on the nerve and the surface (usually in the lower part) | Usually 2–6 cm long, with the edge pubescent or glabrous; leaves generally thicker than in other subspecies | No longer than 8 cm long |
| Inflorescence | Outer involucral bracts of the inflorescence bud 7–25 mm long, green, leaf-shaped, lanceolate or ovate-lanceolate, usually elongated into a narrow and sharp tip, longer than inner involucral bracts; inner involucral bracts 5–10 mm long, rounded, blunt, or shortly pointed, the calyx tube pubescent only on the ribs; corolla usually light pink, although other shades of pink also possible |
Outer involucral bracts of the inflorescence bud 4–5 mm long, ovate or elliptical, rounded, blunt or pointed at the tip, much shorter than inner involucral bracts; inner involucral bracts, usually 6–7 mm long; the calyx tube wholly pubescent or only on the ribs; corolla usually light pink |
Outer involucral bracts are usually up to 4–5 mm long, broadly or narrowly ovate and shortly pointed, shorter than inner involucral bracts; inner involucral bracts 5–7 mm long and rounded at the tip; outer involucral bracts not higher than the inflorescence head, both in a bud and during flowering (in contrast to other subspecies in that the outer bracts may even be twice as high as a bud); the calyx tube pubescent on the ribs and between them; corolla usually dark pink/purple-pink |
| Occurrence | Common in the European Lowlands on sandy, unfertile, sunny grounds; dry and periodically wet meadows; fallow lands; roadsides; and forest edges | A halophyte occurring only in saline, mainly coastal areas, common in north-western Europe along the Atlantic coast to the western Baltic Sea coast | An absolute metallophyte associated with metalliferous areas with copper, zinc, and lead ores near mines and metal smelters |
| Plant community | A characteristic taxon of the Diantho-Armerietum elongatae association | A characteristic taxon of the Armerion maritimae association | A characteristic taxon of the Armerion halleri association and the Armerietum halleri (Libb. 1930) association |