Ballota (horehound) is a genus of flowering evergreen perennial plants and subshrubs in the family Lamiaceae. It is native to temperate regions; the Mediterranean region has the highest diversity in the genus, with more isolated locations in South Africa, Central Asia, northern Europe, and the islands of the eastern North Atlantic.Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant FamiliesAltervista Flora Italiana, Genere Ballota It is found in rocky and waste ground.
Ballota is paraphyletic and will eventually be officially re-circumscribed. It is closely related to Moluccella and Marrubium.Anne-Cathrine Scheen, Mika Bendiksby, Olof Ryding, Cecilie Mathiesen, Victor A. Albert, and Charlotte Lindqvist. 2010. "Molecular Phylogenetics, Character Evolution, and Suprageneric Classification of Lamioideae (Lamiaceae)". Annals of the Missouri Botanical Garden 97(2):191-217. Some of its species had previously been placed in Marrubium. Other species have already been split to Pseudodictamnus
Ballota species are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidoptera including Coleophora case-bearers: C. ballotella, C. lineolea (which has been recorded on B. nigra) and C. ochripennella.
Species
Ballota adenophora Hedge – Saudi Arabia Ballota andreuzziana Pamp. – Libya Ballota antalyensis Tezcan & H.Duman – Turkey Ballota antilibanotica Post – Syria, Lebanon Ballota byblensis Semaan & R.M.Haber – Lebanon Ballota cristata P.H.Davis – Antalya region of Turkey Ballota glandulosissima Hub.-Mor. & Patzak – Turkey Ballota grisea Pojark. – Caucasus Ballota kaiseri Täckh. – Sinai Ballota larendana Boiss. & Heldr. – Turkey Ballota luteola Velen – Saudi Arabia Ballota macrodonta Boiss. & Balansa – Nigde region of Turkey Ballota nigra L. – most of Europe; North Africa, Middle East as far east as Iran; naturalized in New Zealand, Argentina, North America Bornm. – Israel Ballota platyloma Rech.f. – Iran Ballota saxatilis Sieber ex C.Presl – Middle East from Turkey to Saudi Arabia Ballota sechmenii Gemici & Leblebici – Turkey Ballota vellerea Maire, Weiller & Wilczek – Morocco
References