Inula crithmoides Golden-samphire

A rather tufted, hairless perennial, up to 50 cm tall, with fleshy leaves and yellow, daisy-like flowers in summer. It is a salt-tolerant, maritime species which grows mostly on calcareous (or at least base-rich) rock in the salt spray zone of sea cliffs. It is also found in salt marshes and estuaries, particularly in the southeast of England. It is a Mediterranean-Atlantic species which is distributed fairly continuously around the southern coast of Britain, but discontinuously in Wales and with few occurrences in northern Britain. In Wales, it is restricted to the coasts of Glamorgan (VC41), Carmarthern (VC44), Pembrokshire (VC45), Caernarvonshire (VC49) and Anglesea (VC52) and occurs on the Rare Plant Reigisters of all these counties. In West Glamorgan it is most common on the sea-splashed, limestone cliffs along the south Gower coast. It is also occasional in the salt marsh of Neath estuary, with some plants occurring on the salty, tidal banks of the River Neath near the Saltings. The primary osmoregulant responsible for maintaining osmotic balance in the cells of Golden-samphire is glycine-betaine.

Native

This species is also known as Limbarda crithmoides (L.) Dumort.