Aubrieta Adans.
Aubrieta is a complex genus of ca. 15 species native from southern Europe to western Asia. Most are mat-forming perennials with showy pink flowers and thus very popular rock garden plants. According to Akeroyd (1995) eight species (and several additional infraspecific taxa, hybrids, etc.) are cultivated as ornamentals in Europe.
Species of Aubrieta are often neglected and/or overlooked by Belgian botanists. They are most often found near habitations. The exact identity of individual populations surely requires further study. The delimitation of species is often difficult, possibly because species have resulted from hybridisation.
Aubrieta xcultorum (Bergmans 1924) is a nomen nudum. According to Bergmans l.c. this artificial hybrid was raised from Aubrieta deltoidea, A. libanotica Boiss. et Hohen., A. olympica Boiss., A. erubescens Griseb., A. kotschyi Boiss. et Hohen. and possibly others. It always has larger and brighter flowers than Aubrieta deltoidea (and is probably sterile?).
- Siliquae densely to sparsely stellate hairy, long simple hairs absent === Aubrieta columnae
- Siliquae with a mixture of short stellate hairs and longer simple or forked hairs === A. deltoidea
References
Akeroyd J.R. (1995) Aubrieta. In: Cullen J. & al. (eds.), The European Garden Flora, vol. 4. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge: 144-145.
Akeroyd J.R. & Ball P.W. (1993) Aubrieta. In: Tutin T.G. & al. (eds.), Flora Europaea (2nd ed.), vol. 1. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge: 356-358.
Bergmans J. (1924) Vaste planten en rotsheesters. Wereldbibliotheek, Amsterdam: 709 p.
Fan C. (2001) Molecular systematics of the Brassicaceae: evidence from coding plastidic matK and nuclear Chs sequences. Amer. J. Bot. 88: 534-544.
Jalas J. & Suominen J. (eds.) (1994) Atlas florae Europaeae: distribution of vascular plants in Europe. 10: Cruciferae (Sisymbrium to Aubrieta). Helsinki: Committee for Mapping the Flora of Europe and Societas Biologica Fennica Vanamo: 244p.
Koch M.A., Karl R. & German G.A. (2016) Underexplored biodiversity of Eastern Mediterranean biota: Systematics and evolutionary history of the genus Aubrieta (Brassicaceae). Annals of Botany 119: 39-57. [available online at: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/311567263_Underexplored_biodive...
Mattfeld J. (1939) The species of the genus Aubrieta Adanson. Quarterly Bull. Alp. Gard. Soc. 7: 157-181, 217-227.
Phitos D. (1971) Die Gattung Aubrieta in Griechenland. Candollea 25: 69-87.