Geranium tuberosum
Geranium tuberosum L.
Geraniaceae – Crane’s-bill family
Conservation status. Endangered [EN A4c].
Morphology and biology. Herbaceous perennial with tuberous rhizome. Stem branched in its upper part. Leaves deeply divided. Flowers in pairs, each pair on a peduncle; pedicels with simple eglandular hairs. Sepals 4–8 mm long. Petals longer than sepals, deeply emarginate, pinkish lilac with darker veins. Fruit dry, mericarps with a lateral vein in the upper part and with persistent after ripening curved beaks. Fl. IV–V, fr. V–VI. Insect pollination. Reproduction by seeds and vegetative means.
Habitats and populations. Grows in oak forests, scrub dominated by Paliurus spina-christi and Carpinus orientalis, margins of cultivated land (crop fields, vineyards, orchards). Populations are small.
Distribution in Bulgaria. Black Sea coast, Balkan Range (eastern), Znepole Region, Slavyanka Mt, Rhodopi Mts (eastern), Thracian Lowland, Toundzha Hilly Country; up to 800 m alt.
General distribution. S Europe, the Caucasus, SW Asia, N Africa.
Threats. Small population sizes, over-exploitation of species localities (grazing, trampling, ploughing, orchards, vineyards) characterized by high level of soil erosion and preservation of fragments of the native vegetation.
Conservation measures taken. The locality near Nova Lovcha village is in Alibotuch Strict Nature Reserve. The locality near Venets village is in Lalkoto Nature Monument. Some localities are situated in sites of the European ecological network Natura 2000 in Bulgaria.
Conservation measures needed. Legal protection of the species according to the national Biodiversity Act; deposition of seeds to the National Seed Genebank in Bulgaria.
References. Webb & Ferguson 1968; Petrova & Kožuharov 1979; Petrova 1984; Greuter et al. 1989; Dimitrov 1994; Velčev & Vassilev 2002.
Author: Pepa Ignatova
