Fumana arabica, Arabian cistus,
Hebrew: לוטמית ערבית, Arabic: ورد الشمس
Scientific name:  Fumana arabica (L.) Spach
Synonym name:  Helianthemum arabicum Pers.
Common name:  Arabian cistus
Hebrew name:   לוטמית ערבית
Arabic name:  ورد الشمس
Plant Family:  Cistaceae, לוטמיים

Fumana arabica, Arabian cistus, ورد الشمس,לוטמית ערבית
Location: Betah Mountain, Western Galilee

Life form:   Chamaephyte
Stems:  25 cm in height, prostate, ascending, much branched
Leaves:  Alternate, ovate- to oblong-lanceolate, stipulate
Inflorescence:  Solitary or loose racemes
Flowers:  5 Yellow petals; corolla 20-30mm
Fruits / pods:  Capsules 6-8mm
Flowering Period:   March, April, May
Habitat:   Batha, Phrygana
Distribution:  Mediterranean Woodlands and Shrublands, Semi-steppe shrublands, Montane vegetation of Mt. Hermon
Chorotype:   Mediterranean
Summer shedding:  Perennating

Fumana arabica, Arabian cistus, לוטמית ערבית,Cistaceae, לוטמיים


Derivation of the botanical name:
Fumana, Latin fumus, smoke, presumably referring to the nitrous odor of the roots when pulled from the ground.
arabica, of Arabia.
  • The standard author abbreviation L. is used to indicate Carl Linnaeus (1707 – 1778), a Swedish botanist, physician, and zoologist, the father of modern taxonomy.
  • The standard author abbreviation Spach is used to indicate Édouard Spach (1801 – 1879), a French botanist.


Fumana thymofolia is up to 25cm, leaves opposite, stipulate; the petals are lemon-yellow, and corolla is 10-15mm; the pedicels are much longer than the subtending bracts; the capsule is 4-4mm, 4-6 seeded.

Israel, Travel, Nature, Wild Flowers