Coronilla glauca and Coronilla valentina ssp glauca 'Citrina'

The first signs of spring are already visible in the Stavros Niarchos Park. Among the early bloomers, the yellow color seems to dominate, especially this of the glowing Coronilla. In the Mediterranean Garden and next to the Dome, visitors can find the glauca variety and the even fancier subspecies of the variety, valentina ssp. Glauca ‘Citrina’. As the name of the glauca variety suggests, its foliage is blueish-green.

Coronilla is an appreciated ornamental plant. It produces clusters of small crowns with ten small flowers which diffuse at this time of year an intense sweet scent reminiscent of citrus fruits. The plant is distinguished by its great hardiness, its adaptability, and the protection from erosion it provides to the soil through its strong root system.

The plant belongs to the subfamily Papilionoideae, along with beans, peas, spanish broom and many others. The etymology of Papilionoideae in Greek, comes from the soul (psyche) – as the butterfly is called in ancient Greek – and the flower (anthos). Plants in this large subfamily are easily identifiable because of their distinctive flower shape.

Many Papilionoideae plants are of great economic importance because of their edible seeds (legumes), while their ability to enrich the soil with nitrogen, thanks to the symbiotic relationships they develop with bacteria of the genus Rhizobium, is extremely beneficial for crops.

(b)