Israel wildflowers: Downy Rest-harrow

Ononis pubescens, Downy Rest-harrow,
Hebrew: שברק דביק, Arabic: الشبرق الزغبي

Scientific name:   Ononis pubescens L.
Common name:   Downy Rest-harrow
Hebrew name:   שברק דביק
Arabic name:   الشبرق الزغبي, alshabriq alzaghbiu
Family:   Papilionaceae, פרפרניים


Life form:   Annual
Leaves:   Alternate, compound, trifoliate, dentate or serrate
Flowers:   Yellow
Flowering Period:   March, April, May, June
Habitat:   Batha, Phrygana
Distribution:   Mediterranean Woodlands and Shrublands, Semi-steppe shrublands, Montane vegetation of Mt. Hermon
Chorotype:   Mediterranean
Summer shedding:   Ephemeral


Derivation of the botanical name:

Ononis, (Theophrastus) is from the Greek onos, meaning “ass” (because they are said especially to like it), and the classical Greek name used by Pliny for the rest-harrow.

pubescens, to reach puberty, become pubescent; becoming hairy.

  • The standard author abbreviation L. is used to indicate Carl Linnaeus (1707 – 1778), a Swedish botanist, physician, and zoologist, the father of modern taxonomy.