Flowers of Israel: Mediterranean Stinkbush
Anagyris foetida, Stinking bean trefoil, Mediterranean Stinkbush,
Hebrew: צחנן מבאיש, Arabic: خروب الخنازير , السلمون
| Scientific name: | Anagyris foetida L. | |
| Common name: | Mediterranean Stinkbush, Stinking bean trefoil | |
| Hebrew name: | צחנן מבאיש | |
| Arabic name: | خروب الخنازير , السلمون | |
| Family: | Papilionaceae, פרפרניים |
![]() |
| Life form: | Phanerophyte, shrub | |
| Stems: | 1m to 3m. high; stems get lignified to become tough wood | |
| Leaves: | Alternate, compound, trifoliate | |
| Flowers: | Yellow | |
| Fruits / pods: | Flattened legume, dark brown / black; 4-12 seeds per fruit, reniform – broad, kidney-shaped; very hard, smooth surface and posoinous | |
| Flowering Period: | January, February, March, April | |
| Habitat: | Mediterranean maquis and forest | |
| Distribution: | Mediterranean Woodlands and Shrublands, Semi-steppe shrublands, Shrub-steppes, Montane vegetation of Mt. Hermon | |
| Chorotype: | Med – Irano-Turanian | |
| Summer shedding: | Perennating |
![]() Derivation of the botanical name: Anagyris, αναγυροϛ, a strong smelling shrub with pods; Greek ana ‘up, back again, backwards’ and gyros ‘a ring’, referring to the curvature of the pods.
foetida, stinking, bad smelling; unpleasantly scented.
|



