''Saxifraga cespitosa'', the tufted alpine saxifrage or tufted saxifrage, is a species of flowering plant common to many arctic heights. It appears further south in mountainous areas of the

Alps The Alps () are some of the highest and most extensive mountain ranges in Europe, stretching approximately across eight Alpine countries (from west to east): Monaco, France, Switzerland, Italy, Liechtenstein, Germany, Austria and Slovenia. ...

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

Iceland Iceland is a Nordic countries, Nordic island country between the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between North America and Europe. It is culturally and politically linked with Europe and is the regi ...

Siberia Siberia ( ; , ) is an extensive geographical region comprising all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has formed a part of the sovereign territory of Russia and its predecessor states ...

, western

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

and

Greenland Greenland is an autonomous territory in the Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark. It is by far the largest geographically of three constituent parts of the kingdom; the other two are metropolitan Denmark and the Faroe Islands. Citizens of Greenlan ...

. Densely tufted from a stout

taproot A taproot is a large, central, and dominant root from which other roots sprout laterally. Typically a taproot is somewhat straight and very thick, is tapering in shape, and grows directly downward. In some plants, such as the carrot, the taproot ...

, the plant has very short stems with withered, dead

leaves A leaf (: leaves) is a principal appendage of the stem of a vascular plant, usually borne laterally above ground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, stem, ...

at the base. The leaves have three to five lobes; both leaves and calyx exhibit

trichomes Trichomes (; ) are fine outgrowths or appendages on plants, algae, lichens, and certain protists. They are of diverse structure and function. Examples are hairs, glandular hairs, scales, and papillae. A covering of any kind of hair on a plant ...

in the form of glandular hair. Flowering stems range from 5–10 cm, with one or two flowers per stem. Its

petal Petals are modified leaves that form an inner whorl surrounding the reproductive parts of flowers. They are often brightly coloured or unusually shaped to attract pollinators. All of the petals of a flower are collectively known as the ''corol ...

s are white, twice the length of the calyx lobes. Smaller specimens, with shorter stems and smaller, yellowish-greenish petals (with uniflorous variants), are rather frequent. The tufted saxifrage grows on ledges and gravelly places. It became a protected species in the UK in 1975 under the Conservation of Wild Creatures and Wild Plants Act. File:tuftedsaxifrage-1.jpg, Tufted saxifrage File:tuftedsaxifrage-2.jpg, Tufted saxifrage File:tuftedsaxifrage-3.jpg, Tufted saxifrage File:tuftedsaxifrage1-1.jpg, Tufted saxifrage File:Saxifraga cespitosa - Tuftedsaxifrage2-1.jpg, Smaller yellowish var. File:tuftedsaxifrage3-1.jpg, Smaller yellowish var. File:Saxifraga cespitosa - Tuftedsaxifrage4-1.jpg, Smaller var.

References

External links

* * cespitosa Flora of the Arctic Alpine flora Flora of Alaska Flora of Finland Flora of Russia Flora of Norway Flora of Siberia Flora of Iceland Flora of Switzerland Flora of the Alps Flora of Greenland Plants described in 1753 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus Flora without expected TNC conservation status {{Saxifragaceae-stub