Triglav gentiana

The dark blue flower from Triglav.

Author: Peter Strgar

On the rocky grasslands and among scree in the Julian Alps, you might come across a small dark blue flower with ovate-lanceolate leaves.

The Triglav gentian is a flower that grows to a height of three to six centimeters and has dark blue blossoms. It can be found on the southern slopes of Triglav.

Triglav gentian (Gentiana terglouensis)

Size	up to 6 cm
Bloomig period	July – August
Habitat	Scree, dry pastures
Distribution	Julian Alps

Kingdom	Plantae
Phylum	Angiosperms
Class	Eudicots
Order	Gentianales
Family	Gentianaceae
Genus	Gentiana
Species	Gentiana terglouensis

The Triglav gentiana is a flower that grows from three to six centimeters tall. It has short, densely leafy flowering and non-flowering shoots. The basal leaves are egg-shaped and lanceolate. The corolla tube is narrow. The flowers are star-shaped and have five petals. The tubular calyx has lanceolate teeth. It blooms in July and August.

The gentiana grows individually on rocky slopes and dry pastures, primarily in calcium-rich soils. It mainly appears in the company with carex firma, and occasionally alongside the Triglav flower at elevations ranging from 1,900 to 2,700 meters.

This blue alpine plant grows in the Julian Alps, and less commonly in the Karawanks and Kamnik-Savinja Alps.

DID YOU KNOW?

The classic habitat of the Triglav gentiana in Slovenia is the southern slope of Triglav.