''Genista linifolia'' is a species of

broom A broom (also known as a broomstick) is a cleaning tool, consisting of usually stiff fibers (often made of materials such as plastic, hair, or corn husks) attached to, and roughly parallel to, a cylindrical handle, the broomstick. It is thus a ...

known by the common names Mediterranean broom, needle-leaved broom and flax broom. It is native to southwestern Europe, North Africa, and the

Canary Islands The Canary Islands (; ) or Canaries are an archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean and the southernmost Autonomous communities of Spain, Autonomous Community of Spain. They are located in the northwest of Africa, with the closest point to the cont ...

Description

This is a

shrub A shrub or bush is a small to medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from trees by their multiple ...

with hairy green stems and branches which can exceed two meters in height. Its leaves are made up of tough, green, lance-shaped leaflets with woolly undersides. Flowers appear in dense raceme

inflorescence In botany, an inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a plant's Plant stem, stem that is composed of a main branch or a system of branches. An inflorescence is categorized on the basis of the arrangement of flowers on a mai ...

s toward the ends of the branches. The flowers are bright yellow and pealike. The fruit is a hairy legume pod one to four centimeters long containing several seeds.

Invasive plant species

It can be found on other continents in areas of similar

Mediterranean climate A Mediterranean climate ( ), also called a dry summer climate, described by Köppen and Trewartha as ''Cs'', is a temperate climate type that occurs in the lower mid-latitudes (normally 30 to 44 north and south latitude). Such climates typic ...

, such as

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

in the United States, Australia and New Zealand. It has become an

invasive species An invasive species is an introduced species that harms its new environment. Invasive species adversely affect habitats and bioregions, causing ecological, environmental, and/or economic damage. The term can also be used for native spec ...

in those regions.

References

External links

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Jepson Manual TreatmentPhoto gallery
linifolia Flora of the Canary Islands Flora of North Africa Flora of Spain Matorral shrubland Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus Plants described in 1762 {{Faboideae-stub