Carthamus leucocaulos, Sibth. & Sm.

Tutin, T. G., Heywood, V. H., Burges, N. A., Moore, D. M., Valentine, D. H., Walters, S. M. & Webb, D. A., 1976, Flora Europaea. Volume 4. Plantaginaceae to Compositae (and Rubiaceae), Cambridge University Press : 302-303

6. C. leucocaulos Sibth. & Sm. , FZ. Graec. Prodr. 2: 160 (1813).

Usually subglabrous annual, rarely with arachnoid indumentum,

sometimes sparsely glandular; stems whitish to purplish. Cauline leaves pinnatisect to pinnate, with 2-3 pairs of segments, shiny; segments 13-17 mm, spiny. Capitula 10-13 mm in diameter. Outer involucral bracts very shiny, deflexed, 2^-3 times as long as the inner; inner bracts entire. Corolla pale violet, the lobes 3-3-5 mm. Pappus of linear, usually truncate scales 5-7 mm. 2« = 20. • Aegean islands. Cr Gr. C. rechingeri P. H. Davis , Notes Roy. Bot. Gard. Edinb. 2 1: 128 (1953), described from Karpathos, is like 6 but has densely crowded, narrower capitula, leaves with 3-4(-7) pairs of segments, less shiny involucral bracts and pappus-scales 4-5-5 mm. Like 5 it has villous, sometimes spotted stems and shorter leafspines. It requires further investigation.