Artemisia santolina Schrenk (1845: 106)

Jin, Guang-Zhao, Sheludyakova, Mariya, Abduraimov, Ozodbek, Feng, Ying & Ge, Xue-Jun, 2025, A Taxonomic Revision of Artemisia Subgenus Seriphidium (Asteraceae-Anthemideae) in China, Phytotaxa 686 (1), pp. 1-103 : 39

22. Artemisia santolina Schrenk (1845: 106) ≡ Seriphidium santolinum (Schrenk) Poljakov (1961b: 173) . Type:— KAZAKHSTAN. Almaty Province: lower Ili River region, 3 August 1843, A. Schrenk 161 [first-step lectotype designated by Filatova (1984); second-step lectotype designated here: LE00053800!; isolectotype: LE00053845!]. = Artemisia lobulifolia Boissier (1875: 364) ≡ Seriphidium lobulifolium (Boissier) Poljakov (1961b: 172) . Type:— AFGHANISTAN.

Herat province: between Herat and Tabas , 14 November 1858, Bunge s.n. (lectotype designated here: P00712001!; isolectotypes:

P02284357!, P00712002!, K000942195!, GH00002806!).

Perennial herbs or subshrubs, 25–45 cm tall. Stems numerous, often tufted, erect or slightly curved upward at the base, often with numerous short nutritional stems, branching from the middle, branches 5–20 cm long, nearly spreading. Lower stem leaves broadly linear or long elliptic-linear, 1–2-pinnatipartite, 1–7 cm long, 0.5–1.5 cm wide, petiole 0.5– 2.5 cm long, with 7–15 segments per side, lobules suborbicular or oblong, 2–5 mm long, 0.5–1.5 mm wide, rounded at the tip. Middle stem leaves broadly linear or long elliptic-linear, 1–2-pinnatisect, 1–4 cm long, 0.5–1 cm wide. Upper stem leaves pinnately lobed or undivided, with linear lobes. The grayish-white tomentum on the stems and branches partially sheds at maturity, while the tomentum on all leaves persists and the leaves have a slightly soft texture. Capitula ovoid or ovoid-oblong, 3–4 mm long, 2–2.5 mm in diameter. Synflorescence a broad lax panicle. Phyllaries in 4–5 series, outer phyllaries small, ovate, margins membranous, middle and inner phyllaries slightly longer, elliptic or oblong-ovate, outer and middle phyllaries pilose, inner phyllaries semi-membranous, glabrous. Phyllaries shed at maturity. Bisexual florets 3–4, corolla yellow or red. Anthers linear, apex appendages linear, with an obtuse base. Style short, slightly forked at anthesis, tips truncate, ciliate. Achenes with inconspicuous fine longitudinal lines, ovoid or obovoid. Figure 31 .

Distribution and habitat:— Artemisia santolina is distributed in Xinjiang, China ( Figure 32 ). Liu (1993) reported that this species had been introduced in Gansu, but no definitive specimens from this region were examined in this study. It grows in desert dunes at elevations up to 1400 m.

Phenology:—Flowering and fruiting from August to October.

Taxonomic notes:—In the protologue of Artemisia santolina, Schrenk (1845) did not designate a type but mentioned that specimens of the species were collected in 1843 from “Songaria” (a locality in the lower Ili Valley, Kazakhstan). Filatova (1984) later designated the gathering A. Schrenk 161 at LE as the type of A. santolina . We have traced two sheets of this gathering from LE. Both sheets match perfectly the original description. According to Arts. 7.10, 7.11, 9.12 and 9.17 of the ICN ( Turland et al. 2018), Filatova’s (1984) lectotypification should be further narrowed. Therefore, sheet LE00053800 has been designated as the lectotype, and the other sheet as the isolectotype.

This species is easily distinguished from other species in A. subg. Seriphidium by its lower stem leaves with 5–15 segments per side.

Specimens examined:— China. Xinjiang: Karamay , dune edge of the road to G 217, 269 m, 12 July 2012, Patiman s.n. ( KUN) ; Qitai , desert reserve, s.a., 26 July 1996, J. Li & A.L. Dong 960715 ( PE) ; Hutubi, edge of gobi dunes on the way back to Urumqi by the 116th regiment, 600 m, 21 September 1957, K.J. Guan 5061 ( PE) ; Qitai, 40 km south of Beishan Coal Mine to Beita Mountain , 800 m, 26 September 1957, K.J. Guan 5175 ( PE) ; Qitai, Bay Town , 720 m, 30 July 1961, S. Q. Lin et al. 82 ( PE, XJBI) ; Shawan, dunes 10 km south of Shawan , s.a., 7 October 1956, Anonymous 3797 ( PE, XJBI) ; without precise location, s.a., 29 September 1959, Anonymous s.n. ( PE) ; Manas, dunes on the north bank of Manas River , s.a., 10 October 1956, R.C. Ching 3830 ( PE) ; Qitai, dunes 40 km north of Qitai , s.a., 26 July 1956, R.C. Ching 03671 ( PE) ; Jinghe, dunes 7 km south of Shaquanzi , s.a., 27 June 1960, Anonymous 00432 ( XJBI) ; Shihezi, near Shihezi , s.a., 17 June 1957, K.J. Guan 671 ( XJBI) ; Fukang, Beishawo , 490 m, s.d., Anonymous 7012 ( XJA) ; Jinghe, dunes near Bayinamu Mountain , 465 m, 22 September 2020, G.Z. Jin & C.F. Lu jgz-052 ( XJBI) .

Figures

FIGURE 31. Artemisia santolina (photographed by Guang-Zhao Jin). A. habit; B. capitula; C. stem leaves (from top to bottom: lower, middle and upper leaf).

FIGURE 32. Distribution map of Artemisia santolina in China.