The green links below add additional plants to the comparison table. Blue links lead to other Web sites.
enable glossary links

Madeira broom, Madeira dyer's greenweed, Madera broom

dyer's broom, dyer's greenweed, woadwaxen, woodwaxen

Habit Shrubs 1–6 m. Stems densely sericeous, hairs whitish to yellow-brown. Shrubs prostrate to erect, 0.5–2 m. Stems much branched from base, glabrous or sparsely and irregularly hairy.
Leaves

petiolate;

stipules persistent, 1.5–6 mm;

petiole 5–10 mm;

leaflets 3, blades obovate to oblanceolate or elliptic, 5–25 mm, base tapering to cuneate, apex obtuse to rounded, often mucronate, surfaces densely pubescent abaxially, sparsely lanate adaxially.

sessile or subsessile;

stipules 0.8–1.5 mm;

petiole less than 1 mm;

leaflet 1, blade broadly elliptic, lanceolate, or oblanceolate to obovate, 5–50 mm, base rounded, margins sparsely ciliolate, apex aristulate, surfaces glabrous or sparsely pubescent along margins and midvein.

Inflorescences

3–20-flowered, terminal, racemes, 15–70 mm;

bracts 1–2.5 mm.

1–6-flowered, terminal, simple or compound racemes (30–)40–60(–80) mm;

bracts foliaceous, 6–9 mm.

Pedicels

2–4 mm.

1–2 mm.

Flowers

calyx 4–8 mm, densely sericeous;

banner widely ovate, 9–16 mm, glabrous;

wings and keel slightly shorter than banner, wings glabrous, keel pubescent abaxially.

calyx 3–7 mm, glabrous or glabrate to densely pubescent;

banner broadly ovate, 8–12 mm, glabrous;

wings and keel equaling banner, glabrous.

Legumes

narrowly oblong, 20–40 mm, sericeous.

narrowly oblong, 15–25 mm, glabrous.

Seeds

3–6(–10), olive to brownish or black, orbicular, 2.5–3 mm;

hilum red-orange.

4–10, yellow-tan, cordate, 1–1.3 mm.

2n

= 48, 96.

Genista maderensis

Genista tinctoria

Phenology Flowering Apr–Aug. Flowering Mar–Aug.
Habitat Disturbed areas. Recently disturbed areas.
Elevation 0–700 m. (0–2300 ft.) 0–1500 m. (0–4900 ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
CA; Atlantic Islands (Madeira) [Introduced in North America]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
CT; DC; ID; MA; MD; ME; MI; MS; NJ; NY; OH; RI; VA; VT; WA; WI; BC; NS; ON; QC; Europe; intro­duced also in South America (Argentina); Asia (China) [Introduced in North America]
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Genista maderensis is known from Butte, El Dorado, Los Angeles, Monterey, and San Mateo counties.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Genista tinctoria is the most widely distributed and variable taxon in the genus. Two characters that seem to show the most variation are the presence or absence of indument on the leaves, calyx, and fruit and the growth form, with prostrate plants having inflorescences consisting of few-flowered racemes and more erect plants having compound or paniculate racemes. Local and regional floras in the areas to which these plants are endemic often recognize varieties; however, there seems to be no good geographic or genetic basis for doing so.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Source FNA vol. 11. FNA vol. 11.
Parent taxa Fabaceae > subfam. Faboideae > Genista Fabaceae > subfam. Faboideae > Genista
Sibling taxa
G. canariensis, G. linifolia, G. monspessulana, G. tinctoria
G. canariensis, G. linifolia, G. maderensis, G. monspessulana
Synonyms Teline maderensis
Name authority (Webb & Berthelot) Webb ex Lowe: Man. Fl. Madeira 1: 123. (1862) Linnaeus: Sp. Pl. 2: 710. (1753)
Web links