| Soft Felicia | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Felicia amoena subsp.latifolia | |
Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Asterids |
| Order: | Asterales |
| Family: | Asteraceae |
| Genus: | Felicia |
| Section: | Feliciasect. Neodetris |
| Species: | F. amoena |
| Binomial name | |
| Felicia amoena | |
| Subspecies | |
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| Synonyms | |
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Felicia amoena, known as thesoft felicia,[2] is a variably hairy, sometimes glandular,biennial orperennial plant, of about 25 cm (10 in) high, that is assigned to the familyAsteraceae. It is somewhat woody at its base, roots at the nodes if these contact the soil, and has ascending branches. The leaves are oppositely arranged along the stems at and just above a branching fork, further up the leaves alternate. The flower heads sit individually on up to 12 cm (4+1⁄2 in) long stalks. They are2–3 cm (4⁄5–1+1⁄5 in) in diameter and consist of about twelve to twenty five heavenly blue ray florets that surround many yellow disc florets. Three subspecies have been recognised, that differ in width of the leaves and the involucral bracts, the size of the heads and number of ray florets and in having glandular hairs. These can be found in coastal sands and inland areas in theWestern Cape andEastern Cape provinces of South Africa.[3] Flower heads can be found from June till October.[4]
Felicia amoena subsp.amoena is an upright, up to 25 cm (10 in) high,biennial, possibly sometimesperennial, sometimes near its base a bit woody herb, that mostly branches copiously. The branches are often crowded near the plants foot, while thenodes that rest on the ground easily develop roots, the more distant parts of the side branches ascend. Thearrangement of the leaves on the stem changes from opposite to alternating. At the foot the leaves are in several opposite leaf pairs, and further upwards the leaves alternate, but after each branching, the lower one or two pairs are again opposite. The size of the leaves varies greatly, depending on the circumstances, and may be up to4 cm (1+3⁄5 in) long and 21⁄2 mm (0.1 in) wide, linear to lance-shaped, bristly hairy, sometimes hairless with age, thick, with curled-down margins.[3]
Theflower heads sit individually on, up to12 cm (4+1⁄2 in) long, near the top densely felty hairy,stalks, and emerge mostly with three together at the top of the branches. Theinvolucre is up to 7 mm (0.28 in) in diameter and consists of a double row of bracts. The involucral bracts are line- tolance-shaped, about5 mm (1⁄5 in) long and adorned with a brush-like tuft of hairs at their tips. The outer bracts are 0.5 mm (0.020 in) wide and carry arched bristles. The inner bracts are 0.6 mm (0.024 in) wide, slightly bristly and have a prominent midrib.
Theflower heads have up to twenty five dark blue, femaleray florets with straps of about 12 mm (0.47 in) long and 2 mm (0.079 in) wide. These surround manybisexual disc florets with a yellow corolla up to 3 mm (0.12 in) long. In the center of eachcorolla are fiveanthers merged into a tube, through which thestyle grows when the floret opens, hoovering up thepollen on its shaft. At the tip of both style branches is a triangular appendage. Surrounding the base of the corolla are many, white, serratedpappus bristles of about 3 mm (0.12 in) long. The eventually dark brown, dry, one-seeded,indehiscent fruits calledcypselae are inverted egg-shaped, about 2.5 mm (0.098 in) long and 1.2 mm (0.047 in) wide, with a prominent ridge along the margin, with some scales on its surface and short, forked hairs.[3]
Felicia amoena subsp.latifolia is adiploid having eight sets of homologue chromosomes (2n=16).[3]
Felicia amoena and its three subspecies are among the most variabletaxa in thegenus. Subsp.amoena is mostly a biennial, has linear to lance-shaped leaves of up to4 cm (1+3⁄5 in) long and 21⁄2 mm (0.1 in) wide, with a blunt or slightly pointy tip. Its involucres are relatively large, about 7 mm (0.28 in) in diameter and bracts of about 5 mm (0.20 in) long and 0.5–0.6 mm (0.020–0.024 in) wide. It has up to twenty five ray florets of about 12 mm long and 2 mm wide surrounding yellow disc florets. Subsp.latifolia has broader leaves, that are lance-shaped to inverted egg-shaped, 4–13⁄4 cm long and 41⁄2–10 mm wide. It also has wider involucral bracts at about 51⁄2 mm long and 0.9–1.2 mm (0.035–0.047 in) wide. The disc florets often turn dark red with age. Subsp.stricta is always a perennial with a woody base, slightly sticky because it has glandular hairs, and has small and narrow, pointy leaves of 1–13⁄4 cm long and 2–4 mm (0.079–0.157 in) wide, almost all of which are opposite. Its involucres are relatively small, about 5 mm (0.20 in) in diameter, with bracts only 4 mm (0.16 in) long, with only about twelve ray florets of 8 mm long and 11⁄2 mm wide.[3]
As far as known, the first specimen of this daisy species wascollected in 1826, where the road from the Potberg crosses theBreede River, by Cape Town organ playerLudwig Beil. It is now assigned to the subspecieslatifolia. A plant collected byJohann Franz Drège atRiebeek-Kasteel, was described byAugustin Pyramus de Candolle in 1836, who called itAgathaea stricta, is now assigned to subsp.stricta. The first specimen now assigned to subspeciesamoena was collected fromHout Bay on the west coast of the Cape Peninsula byChristian Ferdinand Friedrich Krauss in 1838. It was described in 1843 byCarl Heinrich "Bipontinus" Schultz, who named itAgathaea amoena. In 1865,William Henry Harvey, who was alumper, sunkAgataea inAster, creating the combinationAster amoenus. He distinguished a slightly different specimen, that had been collected byKarl Wilhelm Ludwig Pappe, and named it after himAster pappei. Harvey further distinguishedAster elongatus var.spathulaefolius in the same publication. Finally Harvey regarded De Candolle's specimen as a variety that should be placed underChristian Friedrich Lessing's speciesAster adfinis (nowFelicia dubia), creating the combinationAster adfinis var.stricta. In 1948, the eminent South African botanistMargaret Levyns created the combinationFelicia amoena, that is still in use today. In his 1973Revision of the genus Felicia (Asteraceae),Jürke Grau distinguished three subspecies:F. amoena subsp.amoena,F. amoena subsp.stricta, and his new taxonF. amoena subsp.latifolia. The species is considered to be part of thesectionNeodetris.[3]
The speciesepithetamoena means "beautiful" or "pleasing" and is said to refer to the attractive flower heads.[4]
Felicia amoena subsp.amoena has the smaller distribution of the three subspecies. It is restricted to the sandy soils around theCape Peninsula and near Gordons Bay. Subsp.latifolia has the largest area and occurs along the coast from the Cape Peninsula in the very west to the mouth of theSundays River in the east. An isolated population also occurs in the southern Cedarberg. Subsp.stricta can be found inland, from the Cedarberg in the north, via thePiketberg along the western edge, aroundCeres, nearWorcester andSwellendam on the eastern edge toBredasdorp in the south.[3]
The continued survival of all three subspecies ofFelicia amoena is considered to be ofleast concern because their populations are stable.[5][6][7]