Species name :

Lithospermum arvense L.

Synonyms :
(basionym or principal syn.)

Buglossoides arvense

Full list of synonyms : [Euro+Med] [PlantList] [IPNI] [POWO] [Catalogue of Life ]

Plant Family :

Boraginaceae Juss. (The Borage Family)
16 species from the Boraginaceae family are recorded from the Maltese Islands.

English name(s) :

Field Gromwell, Corn Gromwell

Maltese name(s) :

Maltese name not known

Status for Malta :

Indigenous. Present on the Maltese islands before man

Frequency :

Very Common     Common     Frequent     Scarce     Rare     Very rare     Extinct

Growth form :

Raunkiaer lifeform [info]: THEROPHYTE (annuals)
Germination [info]: Dicotyledon

Legal Protection [link]:

Not Protected by Law (LN200/2011 or LN311/2006)

Red List (1989) :

Not listed in the Red Data Book of the Maltese Islands

Flowering Time :

Jan-May

Colour of Flowers:

White

Habitat in Europe:

Meadows, cultivated areas, abandoned fields and other open habitats.

Preferred habitat in Malta:

Data will be available in the next update of this website.

Botanical Description:

Annual; stems (1.5-)5-50(-90) cm, solitary to many, appressed-setulose-hispid. Lowest leaves oblong-spathulate or obovate, obtuse, the others oblong to linear, acute or subacute, usually erect. Cymes solitary or paired. Calyx-lobes linear or linear-lanceolate, unequal, acute. Corolla (4-)6-9 mm, white, purplish or blue. Stamens inserted below the middle of the corolla-tube. Nutlets brownish, hard.

Chromosome number:

2n=28,42

Distributional range:

Most of Europe

Distributional map in Europe
and the Mediterranean region (2018):

Occurrences in Europe.
(from Flora Europaea pre year 1993):

All Europe except the Azores, Faroe Islands, Iceland, Svalbard archipelago

Occurrences in Europe and the Mediterranean region.
(Euro+Med Checklist, 2017) - Country codes

AE Ag Al Ar Au(A) Be(B L) Bl Br Bu By dCa(C F L T) Co Cr Cs Cy Da Es Fe Ga Ge Gg Gr Hb He Ho Hs(S) Hu It La LS Lt Lu Ma Mo No Po Rf(C E K N NW S) Rm Sa Si(M) Sk Sl Su Tu(A E) Uk(K) [Ge Hu]