Cretan catchfly

Appearance

Bright green annual, eglandular-pubescent below, with viscid sections above.
Stems: (15-)30-60 cm, sparingly branched above, erect, puberulent at the base with deflexed hairs, glabrous above, rarely entirely glabrous. Leaves: Basal, spathulate, petiolate. Upper smaller, linear, sessile. Flowers: Few, in a very lax dichasia. Pink. Pedicels, 2-5 times as long as the calyx. Calyx, 9-16 mm, ovoid in fruit. Calyx-teeth, triangular, acute or acuminate. Petal-limb, 4-8 mm, obcordate, bright pink, with rather long, narrowly triangular coronal scales. Anthophore, 1.5-2.5 mm.

Distribution

Peloponnesos and Ionian Islands Italy, Balkan Peninsula, SW Anatolia and Cyprus, casual in SW Europe. Widespread on Crete.

Habitat

Grassy meadows, dry open shrubby vegetation, open woodland, olive groves field margins. 0-1500 m.