Onopordum bracteatum
Σαρατζιηνός
The word “onopordum” comes from older Greek “όνος + πέρδομαι”, which means “fart of the donkey”. “Bracteatum” is Latin and it means “covered with a veneer of gold/shining like gold”. It is a common Onopodum species encountered in southern, hilly or mountainous Cyprus. It is one of the three that exist in Cyprus and it is similar to Onopodum x makrisii. Bracteatum leaves are not very deeply lobed and the incisions are less than 50% in the middle of the leaf. Onopodum x makrisii’s leaves are deeply pinnatisect, almost to midrib. Onopordum bracteatum, “the Saracen” as it is called locally, grows at an altitude between 250-1350 metres and it blooms usually June-July.