Asperula cynanchica
Hill - Meier ( Asperula cynanchica )
The hill - Meier also hill - master or root tan ( Asperula cynanchica ) is a plant of the family Rubiaceae ( Rubiaceae ).
Features
The hill - Meier is a herbaceous, perennial plant, reaching heights of growth from 10 to 40 cm. The plant grows lockerrasig. The stems are bendable. The leaves are narrow - linear and are in whorls of up to four leaves. The lower stem leaves are withered at flowering time. The stem leaves in the middle and upper range are shorter than the internodes. The bracts have a spike tip and not or scarcely project beyond the ovary.
The corolla is bright pink or white, the outside is raukörnig. The crown is four columns, the corolla tube is one to two times as long as the petals. Pollination is by insects ( entomophily ). Bloom time is June to September.
The fruits are dry, do not wear hakigen hair and are clearly warty.
Ecology
The hill - Meier is a Hemikryptophyt. It is pollinated by insects, such as Fly, butterflies and beetles. In addition, spontaneous self-pollination is possible. The fruits are small gekörnelte nuts with formic acid or by digestion distribution. There is a rich branched root system that allows vegetative propagation as Wurzelkriecher.
Distribution, locations and hazard
The hill - Meier is widely used in Europe, except the north. He comes in Central Europe in the south often to absent-minded, in the north often. The northern limit of distribution extends in the region Southern Netherlands - Ahr - Süntel - Braunschweig - South Mecklenburg- Vorpommern - Brandenburg. He comes in all Austrian federal states frequently to rarely and is in Lower Austria's Waldviertel, the Upper Austria Upper Austria and northern Vorarlberg as endangered.
The hill - Meier grows in calcareous grasslands, on slopes, on sandy corridors, dry bushes hemming, forest edges and in pine dry forests. It grows mainly on dry, calcareous soils in the hill and subalpine altitude level and rises to 1800 m above sea level.
System
The species is very rich in form. Some authors, two varieties are distinguished:
- Asperula cynanchica var cynanchica with pink flowers and a 2.5 mm long Blütenkronröhre.
- Asperula cynanchica var arenicola ( Reut. ) Gremli often with white flowers and a long corolla tube about 2.5 mm.