Morphological and anatomical studies on Ziziphora clinopodioides Lam. (Labiatae)

In this study 39 macro-morphological features of 8 populations of Z. clinopodioides Lam. were studied to find their diagnostic features for distinguishing their different subspecies in Iran. Micro-morphological characters of epidermis and pollen grains were considered. In order to determine the most variable morphological characters among the species studied, factor analysis based on principal components analysis was performed using SPSS ver. 9. Palynological studies show the general form of tribe Mentheae. According to the present results, the pollen morphology in Ziziphora clinopodioides may be helpful in elucidating the infra specific relationships. Leaf micro-characters of epidermis were shown to be of great importance in the taxonomy of the Z. clinopodioides subspecies. Using complement macro-characters for taxonomic purposes is highly recommended in Ziziphora L.