Ulex europaeus |
Ulex |
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common gorse, gorse |
furze, gorse |
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Habit | Shrubs 2–3 m. Stems extensively intertwined, branchlets leafy; older plants with dead mass at center. | Shrubs, heavily armed. |
Stems | erect, extensively branched from base, striate, shoots modified to thorns, 1–3 cm, new growth glaucous, older stems hirsute to tomentose, hairs gray to red-brown. |
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Leaves | persistent, alternate, unifoliolate or odd-pinnate (3-foliolate in seedlings), leaflets gradually reduced to phyllodes; stipules absent; petiolate; phyllodes spinelike, surfaces pubescent. |
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Inflorescences | 1–5-flowered, axillary, usually clusters, rarely short racemes; bracts absent; bracteoles 2, immediately subtending calyx. |
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Flowers | calyx ± yellow, membranous, lobes concave, 12–15 mm, hairs ± spreading; corolla persistent; banner ovate, to 20 mm; wings and keel oblong, slightly shorter than banner, obtuse; wings slightly longer than keel. |
papilionaceous; calyx bilabiate, lobes 5, abaxial lip 3-lobed, adaxial lip 2-lobed; corolla yellow; stamens 10, monadelphous; anthers dorsifixed; ovary sessile; style incurved, glabrous. |
Fruits | legumes, partly enclosed by calyx, pedicellate, slightly compressed, ovoid, oblong, or linear, dehiscent, densely villous. |
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Legumes | dark purplish brown, 1.5–2.5 × 6–8 mm, explosively dehiscent. |
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Seeds | brownish green; hilar appendages relatively small. |
1–6, reniform. |
Phyllodes | 4–14 mm. |
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Bracteoles | 1.5–7 mm wide. |
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x | = 16. |
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2n | = 32, 64, 96. |
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Ulex europaeus |
Ulex |
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Phenology | Flowering Jan–Nov. | |
Habitat | Roadsides, pastures, open forests, coastal bluffs, floodplains, disturbed areas in well-drained soils, particularly in coastal regions. | |
Elevation | 0–400 m. (0–1300 ft.) | |
Distribution |
CA; MA; NY; OR; PA; VA; WA; WV; BC; w Europe [Introduced in North America; introduced also in South America, c, n Europe, Asia, Africa, Pacific Islands (Hawaii, New Zealand), Australia]
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w Europe; n Africa [Introduced in North America; introduced also in South America, c, n Europe, Asia, Africa, Pacific Islands (Hawaii, New Zealand), Australia] |
Discussion | Ulex europaeus is cultivated for fodder, bedding, and hedges; the flowers are used to produce a dye. An extract from the seeds is used for tissue typing, due to its ability to selectively bind with certain types of lipids and proteins. In Massachusetts, the species was last collected in 1931 and is likely extirpated there. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Species ca. 20 (1 in the flora). (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 11. | FNA vol. 11. |
Parent taxa | Fabaceae > subfam. Faboideae > Ulex | Fabaceae > subfam. Faboideae |
Subordinate taxa | ||
Name authority | Linnaeus: Sp. Pl. 2: 741. (1753) | Linnaeus: Sp. Pl. 2: 741. (1753): Gen. Pl. ed. 5, 329. (1754) |
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