Author: آمنه غلامی 
Cousinia silvanica Attar
Parvin Salehi Shanjani, Bahare Afsharnezhad and Valiullah Mozaffarian
Natural Resources Gene Bank, Research Institute of Forests and Rangelands, Agricultural Research, Education and Extension Organization, Tehran, Iran.
Uploaded at october 2025
Scientific editor: Masoumeh Izadpanah
Seed Storage
The storage behavior of this species is orthodox (desiccation-tolerant seeds), dry to 15-20% eRH, and store at -20°C.
Germination requirements
The seeds of this species have non-deep dormancy. Sterilize seeds before placing them on wet germination paper. Place seeds for two weeks at 4 ºC to germinate uniformly. Then germinate under an alternating temperature regime of 15/20 ºC (the higher temperature for 16 hours in light and the lower one for eight hours in dark).
Morphology
Fruit type: Achene
Fruit shape: Slightly cuneiform, dorsal side slightly convex, ventral side flat, base narrowed to hilum, pappus deciduous. Surface glabrous, wav-like reticulate, lusterless, brown with yellowish pale brown patterns
Fruit size: Length 5.02 mm to 5.41 mm, width 2.22 mm to 2.37 mm in an accession from???? West Azerbaijan, with 1000 seed/fruit weight 3.9 g, which was collected and identified in 2016 by Valiullah Mozaffarian is stored in the Natural Resources Gene Bank of Iran with the accession number 45934.
Average 1000 seed/fruit weight: 3.9 g
Biological features
Life form: Herbaseous, perennial, spiny, usually glabrous or sometimes pubescent. Stems erect, up to 60 cm long
Inflorescence, flower type, and pollination mechanism: Solitary capitate, capitulum discoid, with 45 to 160 florets, 20 to 32 mm long, color dirty yellow, white or dirty pale violet; involucre cup-shaped, length 25 to 40 mm, diameter 20 to 40 mm, involucral bracts multiseriate. Plant monoecious, cross-pollinated. Pollination is carried out by insects and wind.
Time of flowering: Late spring to mid-summer
Time of seed ripening: Summer
Seed dispersal methods: Seed weight
Geographical distribution: Exclusive to southeast Turky and northwest Iran. Typus from Khoy, Azarbaijan, Iran
Distribution in Iran: Northwest. Mostly in Provinces Azerbaijan
Taxonomy
Family: Asteraceae
Genus: Cousinia
Species: C. silvanica
References and Links
Assadi, M., Mehregan, I. 2017. Flora of Iran, No. 125: Asteraceae, Cousinia. Institute of Forests and Rangelands Press, Tehran, Iran, 396 pp.
Black, M. and Bewley, J.D. 2000. Seed technology and its biological basis. Sheffield Academic Press, 1-419 pp.
Bojňanský, V. and Fargašová, A. 2007. Atlas of seeds and fruits of central and East-European flora: the Carpathian Mountains region. Springer, Dordrecht, The Netherlands, 1046 pp.
Ghahraman, A. Flore of Iran. Research Institute of Forests and Rangelands with University of Tehran Publication. https://floraofiran.net/index.php.
Mozaffarian, V.A. 1998. Dictionary of Iranian plants names. Farhange Moaser Publisher, Tehran, 671 pp.
Mozaffarian, V.A. 2012. A Pictorial dictionary of botany. Farhange Moaser Publisher, Tehran, 1088 pp.
Sharma, O.P. 2009. Plant taxonomy 2E. Tata McGraw-Hill Education, New Delhi
