Primula macrophylla K.Koch

Habit

Herb

Family Description

Herbs, usually rhizomatous, perennial or annual. Leaves simple, sometimes all radical or sometimes cauline, alternate or opposite, exstipulate. Flowers bisexual, regular, mostly 5-merous, sometimes 4-7-merous, small or medium-sized, sometimes axillary, solitary or in heads, umbels or in whorls sometimes aggregated into racemes or spikes, inflorescences often on peduncles (scapes); flowers monomorphic or dimorphic (pin- and thrum-flowers) with styles and stamens set at different levels. Calyx teeth connate or at least coherent at base. Corolla rotate with cylindrical basal tube and 5-7 patently spreading lobes or funnel-shaped with corolla tube and lobes more or less in line. Stamens as many as corolla lobes, adnate and opposite to them. Ovary superior, ovoid, globose or narrowly cylindric, unilocular, style short or elongate, stigma often capitate. Capsule 5-7-valved or upper part dehiscing as a cap or bursting irregularly. Seeds few to numerous, borne on a free central placenta, compressed and winged or peltate and convex beneath.

Genus Description

Rhizomatous perennial herbs. Leaves all radical, often obovate, spathulate, rarely orbicular and petiolate, sometimes surrounded at base by oblong or rounded bud scales, sometimes dusted with yellow or whitish farina. Flowers on peduncles, solitary or few, or in heads, umbels or whorls, these sometimes superposed in candelabra, monomorphic or dimorphic (pin-and thrum-flowers) with styles and stamens set at different levels in the corollas. Calyx tubular or funnel-shaped, teeth 5, sometimes farinose. Corolla usually rotate with cylindrical basal tube and 5 patently spreading lobes (with area around mouth of tube or 'eye' differently coloured), sometimes funnel-shaped, campanulate or saucerglobose or ovoid, 5-valved, sometimes dehiscing irregularly. Seeds ± peltate, flattened dorsally, convex ventrally.

Species description

Robust herb with winter resting-buds and numerous persistent dead leaves. Bud scales 3-5cm, reddish, often farinose. Leaves oblanceolate, 5-14 x 1-3cm, acute, base attenuate to winged petiole, margin finely crenate, slightly revolute, creamy or yellow farinose beneath, otherwise glabrous. peduncle 9-20cm(-25cm in fruit), farinose above, carrying a single umbel of 3-12 flowers; bracts purplish, leafy, linear-lanceolate, 10-15mm, ± equalling pedicels; pedicels 5-17mm in flower (up to 9cm in fruit), farinose. Calyx purple, 8-15mm, cylindric, divided to 2/3 or 3/4 into linear-lanceolate teeth, acute or subacute, farinose chiefly within. Corolla deep lilac or rich purple, with darker purple eye, tube 12-18mm, limb 2-2.5cm diameter, lobes obovate, entire or slightly emarginate. Capsule cylindric, 10-15mm, dehiscing by acute valves.