The genus Anchusa L belongs to the tribe Boragineae of the borage family (Boraginaceae). It includes about 40 species. Genera many, see text Boraginaceae Juss. ...

These species grow in Europe, North Africa, South Africa en Western Asia. They are introduced into the USA.

They consist of annual plants, biennial plants and perennial plants with the general characteristics of the borage family. They are generally herbs, covered with bristly hairs. The leaves are simple or undulate, covered with stiff hairs. An annual is a plant that usually germinates, flowers and dies in one year. ... A Biennial plant is a plant that takes between twelve and twenty-four months to complete its lifecycle. ... A Red Valerian, a perennial plant. ... In botany, a leaf is an above-ground plant organ specialized for photosynthesis. ...

The small radially symmetrical flowers are sapphire blue and retain their color a long time. The plants show numerous flowers with 5 sepals, untied at their base, and 5 petals forming a narrow tube facing upwards. The flowers grow in several axillary cymes, simple or branched, or are clustered at the end. The flowers are much frequented by bees. Wildflowers A flower is the reproductive organ of those plants classified as angiosperms (flowering plants; Division Magnoliophyta). ... Flower of the Primrose Willowherb (Ludwigia octovalvis) showing petals and sepals A sepal is one member or part of the calyx of a flower. ... For the petals of chakras, see Petal (chakra). ... Families Andrenidae Anthophoridae Apidae Colletidae Ctenoplectridae Halictidae Heterogynaidae Megachilidae Melittidae Oxaeidae Sphecidae Stenotritidae bee or bees, see bee (disambiguation). ...

The roots of Anchusa (just like those of Alkanna and Lithospermum) contain anchusin (or alkanet-red ), a red-brown resinoid coloring matter. It is insoluble in water, but soluble in alcohol, chloroform and ether. Inset trapped in resin. ... In general usage, alcohol (from Arabic al-khwl الكحول, or al-ghawl الغول) refers almost always to ethanol, also known as grain alcohol, and often to any beverage that contains ethanol (see alcoholic beverage). ... Chloroform (also known as trichloromethane and methyl trichloride) is a chemical compound with formula CHCl3. ... Ether is the general name for a class of chemical compounds which contain an ether group — an oxygen atom connected to two (substituted) alkyl groups. ...

Taxonomy

There are four subgenera : Buglossum, Buglossoides, Buglossellum and Anchusa.

The first two form one subclade, the other two each a separate subclade. The subclade of the subgenus Anchusa (containing Anchusa capensis) is largely unresolved.

If we consider Anchusa s.l., then it includes the subgenus Limbata, which diverges markedly in its floral morphology.

The subgenera Buglossum, Buglossellum and Buglossoides clearly need new independent entities, while the subgenus Anchusa needs a narrower concept. This way taxonomy and phylogeny with respect to Anchusa can become completely analogous.

The following genera are synonyms for Anchusa : Buglossum Mill., Hormuzakia Gusul, Lycopsis L. and Phyllocara Gusul.. The genus Anchusella Bigazzi et al. is sometimes included in Anchusa.

Species

• Anchusa aegyptiaca (L.) A. DC.
• Anchusa aggregata Lehm.
• Anchusa arvensis (L.) M.Bieb.. : Small Bugloss, Bugloss, Annual Bugloss
  • Anchusa arvensis subsp. arvensis
• Anchusa atlantica Ball
• Anchusa aucheri A. DC.
• Anchusa azurea P.Mill.: Italian Bugloss, Large Blue Alkanet
• Anchusa barrelieri (All.) Vitman : Barrelier's bugloss
• Anchusa caespitosa Lam.
• Anchusa calcarea Boiss.
• Anchusa capellii Moris
• Anchusa capensis Thunb.: Cape Bugloss, Cape Forget-me-not
• Anchusa cretica Miller
• Anchusa crispa Viv. (status vulnerable to endangered in France and Italy)
• Anchusa davidovii Stoj.
• Anchusa formosa sp. nov. : (Sardinia)
• Anchusa gmelinii Ledeb.
• Anchusa hispida Forsskål
• Anchusa hybrida Ten.
• Anchusa italica Retz.
• Anchusa leptophylla Roemer & Schultes
• A. leucantha sp. nov. (Greece)
• Anchusa littorea Moris
• Anchusa macedonica Degen & Dörfler  : to be removed ; shows too much affinities with Gastrocotyle hispida or the related genus Cynoglottis (Selvi, F. & Bigazzi, M. - Taxon 49: 765-778. 2000)
• Anchusa macrosyrinx Rech. fil. = synonym of A. undulata ssp. sartorii
• Anchusa mairei Gusuleac
• Anchusa milleri Sprengel
• Anchusa ochroleuca M.Bieb.
• Anchusa officinalis L. : True Alkanet, Bugloss, Common Bugloss, Corn Bugloss, Field Bugloss (type species)
  • A. officinalis L. ssp. intacta (Griseb.) Selvi & Bigazz
• Anchusa ovata Lehm.
• Anchusa procera Besser
• Anchusa pseudogranatensis (Br.-Bl. & Maire) Sennen & Mauricio
• Anchusa puechii Valdés
• Anchusa pusilla Gusuleac
• Anchusa samothracica
• Anchusa sartorii Gusuleac
• Anchusa sempervirens : Evergreen Alkanet)
• Anchusa spruneri Boiss.
• Anchusa strigosa
• Anchusa stylosa M.Bieb.
  • Anchusa stylosa M.Bieb. ssp. spruneri (Boiss.) Selvi & Bigazzi
• Anchusa subglabra A. Caballero
• Anchusa thessala
• Anchusa tiberiadis Post
• Anchusa undulata L.
  • Anchusa undulata subsp. granatensis (Boiss.) Valdés
  • Anchusa undulata subsp. lamprocarpa Br.-Bl. & Maire
  • Anchusa undulata subsp. viciosoi Laínz
  • Anchusa undulata ssp. sartorii (Gu ul.) Selvi & Bigazzi
• Anchusa variegata (L.) Lehm.
• Anchusa velenovskii (Gusuleac) Stoj.

Reference

• Molecular Systematics of Boraginaceae Tribe Boragineae Based on ITS1 and trnL Sequences, with Special Reference to Anchusa s.l.; HILGER et al. Ann Bot.2004; 94: 201-212. (http://aob.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/94/2/201)