北极花属 bei ji hua shu

Linneusia Rafinesque; Obolaria Kuntze (1891), not Linnaeus (1753).

Subshrubs, creeping, evergreen. Branches ascending, slender. Leaves opposite, petiolate, estipulate. Inflorescences of 2 paired and nodding flowers at apices of short lateral branches; peduncles long, slender; ovary with 2 pairs of bracts at base; 2 outer bracts larger and shieldlike, covered with stipitate glandular hairs; 2 inner bracts minute; peduncles, ovaries, and sepals glandular hairy. Sepals 5, deciduous. Corolla funnelform, 5-lobed, slightly bilabiate. Stamens 4, didynamous, inserted in corolla tube; anthers included. Ovary 3-locular, 2 locules with 2 series of sterile ovules, 1 locule with a single fertile ovule; style filiform; stigmas capitate. Fruit a 1-seeded achene.

One species: widely distributed in alpine and cold regions of the N Hemisphere.

Lower Taxon

• Linnaea borealis Linnaeus