Alyssum wulfenianum

Alyssum wulfenianum
At the Botanical Garden of Maria Curie-Skłodowska University
Botanical illustration
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Brassicales
Family: Brassicaceae
Genus: Alyssum
Species:
A. wulfenianum
Binomial name
Alyssum wulfenianum
Synonyms[1][2][3]
  • Adyseton montanum Scop.
  • Adyseton wulfenianum (Willd.) Sweet
  • Alyssum alpestre Wulfen ex Nyman
  • Alyssum heinzii Ullep.
  • Alyssum ovirense A.Kern.

Alyssum wulfenianum, the madwort (a name it shares with some of the other members of its genus), is a species of flowering plant in the family Brassicaceae, native to the southeastern Alps.[1][4] Preferring dry, porous soils, it is hardy in USDA zones four through nine.[5] There is a cultivar, 'Golden Spring'.[6][5]

Characteristics

The size of the plant can vary between 15 cm (5.9 inches) and 30 cm (12 inches).[7] The leaves range in color from brown to a dark green. Flowers of the plant are typically bright yellow and have four petals.[5] Soil that contains Alyssum wulfenianum has been shown to have increased zinc and lead as a result of the plant.[8] It has a flowering period in the summer between May and June, and usually lacks hair on its stems. It was named after Austrian botanist and mineralogist Franz Xaver von Wulfan due to his research in the area.[9]

Subtaxa

The following subspecies are accepted:[1][2][3]

  • Alyssum wulfenianum subsp. ovirense (A.Kern.) Magauer, Schönsw. & Frajman – southeastern Alps
  • Alyssum wulfenianum subsp. wulfenianum – southeastern Alps

References

  1. ^ a b c "Alyssum wulfenianum Willd". Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 18 August 2022.
  2. ^ a b "Alyssum wulfenianum subsp. ovirense (A.Kern.) Magauer, Schönsw. & Frajman". Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 18 August 2022.
  3. ^ a b "Alyssum wulfenianum subsp. wulfenianum". Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 18 August 2022.
  4. ^ "Alyssum wulfenianum madwort". The Royal Horticultural Society. 2022. Retrieved 18 August 2022. 1 suppliers
  5. ^ a b c "Alyssum wulfenianum 'Golden Spring'". Plant Finder. Missouri Botanical Garden. 2022. Retrieved 18 August 2022.
  6. ^ "Alyssum wulfenianum 'Golden Spring'". The Royal Horticultural Society. 2022. Retrieved 18 August 2022.
  7. ^ "Plant of the Month for June 2015 | North American Rock Garden Society". North American Rock Garden Society. Retrieved 17 November 2025.
  8. ^ Magauer, Marianne; Schönswetter, Peter; Jang, Tae-Soo; Frajman, Božo (2014). "Disentangling relationships within the disjunctly distributed Alyssum ovirense / A. wulfenianum group (Brassicaceae), including description of a novel species from the north-eastern Alps: Alyssum in the eastern Alps". Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society. 176 (4): 486–505. doi:10.1111/boj.12214.
  9. ^ Griebl, Norbert (8 May 2025). Alpine Flowers The Complete Field Guide. Bloomsbury Publishing. p. 108. ISBN 9781399419895.