Urospermum picroides, Prickly cupped Goat's Beard
 
Scientific name:  Urospermum picroides
Common name  Prickly cupped Goat's Beard
Hebrew name:  אזנב מצוי
Family:  Compositae (Asteraceae), מורכבים

Urospermum picroides, Prickly cupped Goat's Beard, אזנב מצוי
 
Life form (Raunkiaer):  Annual
Leaves:  Alternate, simple, stalked, thin, lanceolate to ovate-oblong, 3-6 inches long, 1/2 to 2 inches wide, often broadest at middle, glabrous or somewhat pubescent; bases narrowed; margins conspicuously toothed; tips pointed; upper leaves gradually reduced.
Inflorescences:  Racemes, elongate, spike-like, 15-30 inches long, sparsely or densely flowered.
Flowers:  Deeply 5-lobed; calyx lobes linear, spreading; corollas wheel-shaped, approximately 1 inch wide, blue with whitish centers; style long-protruding, bending downward then curving upward.
Fruits:  Capsules, stiffly erect, 1/4 to 1/2 inch long; seeds chestnut-brown, lustrous.
Flowering Period:  March, April, May
Habitat:  Batha, Phrygana
Distribution:  The Mediterranean Woodlands and Shrublands, Semi-steppe shrublands, Shrub-steppes, Deserts and extreme deserts, Montane vegetation of Mt. Hermon
Summer shedding:  ephemeral

Urospermum picroides, Prickly cupped Goat's Beard, אזנב מצוי         Urospermum picroides, Prickly cupped Goat's Beard, אזנב מצוי

Urospermum picroides, Prickly cupped Goat's Beard, אזנב מצוי