COMPARISON OF MORPHOLOGICAL CHARACTERS IN VEGETATIVE AND GENERATIVE ORGANS OF ENDEMIC TWO SEMPERVIVUM L. TAXA (CRASSULACEAE) IN TÜRKİYE

In this study, the morphological characters of the vegetative and generative organs of two endemic Sempervivum taxa (Sempervivum brevipilum and Sempervivum gillianiae), which are very similar to each other in terms of their morphological characters, were compared. Morphological examinations were carried out on fresh plant and herbarium samples, and light and stereo microscopes were used. Some similar (rosette leaves are curled and fleshy, apex structure of rosette leaves, root colour, stem is erect and densely hairy, stem leaf structure and pubescence, pedicel length, sepals are adjacent, pubescence and number of sepals, free petals, width, shape and hairiness of petals, anther colour, anther attachment to filaments, fruit structure and number of seeds, seed colour and size) and different (plant height, length and structure of roots, structure and diameter of stolon, rosette diameter, condition of rosette leaves (common and collective), shape, colour and number of rosette leaves, width, length and hairiness of rosette leaves, stem height and colour, width, length and colour of stem leaves, number of flowers in the panicle on the stem, colour, width and length of sepals, the apex structure of the sepals, fleshy condition of sepal, petal colour, apex structure, length and number of petals, filament colour, length and number of stamens, ovary structure and length, stylus length, female organ length, habitats, height, flowering time) morphological characters were determined in the vegetative and generative organs of these taxa. The Mann-Whitney U test was applied to the measurement results of morphological characters. The different morphological characters were found to be valuable taxonomic features that can be used to distinguish two Sempervivum taxa. Keywords: Sempervivum taxa, endemic, morphology, Türkiye.