Echium nervosum

Description

Echium nervosum is a species of flowering plants of the family Boraginaceae. It is endemic to Madeira. The specific name nervosum is from Latin and means "veined". It is a compact woody shrub, average height 100 centimetres (39 in), maximum height 150 centimetres (59 in). The leaves are narrow, densely haired and silver green. Its flowers are pale blue to pale bluish rose and sit in an egg-shaped inflorescence. Echium is a genus of approximately 70 species and several subspecies of flowering plant in the family Boraginaceae. Species of Echium are native to North Africa, mainland Europe to Central Asia, and the Macaronesian islands where it reaches its maximum diversity. 29 species of Echium are endemic to the Canary, Madeira, and Cape Verde archipelagos. The continental species are herbaceous, whereas all but two of the endemic species of the Macaronesian islands are woody perennial shrubs. The Latin genus name comes from the Greek word (echis) meaning a viper, and dates to Dioscorides who noted a resemblance between the shape of the nutlets to a viper’s head. The genus Echium was published by Carl Linnaeus in 1753. Many species are used as ornamental and garden plants and may be found in suitable climates throughout the world. In Crete Echium italicum is called pateroi or voidoglosses and its tender shoots are eaten boiled or steamed. Echium species are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species including Coleophora onosmella and orange swift. The seed oil from Echium plantagineum contains high levels of alpha linolenic acid (ALA), gamma linolenic acid (GLA) and stearidonic acid (SDA), making it valuable in cosmetic and skin care applications, with further potential as a functional food, as an alternative to fish oils.