Edelweiss

[David Shaw]

Following on from our trips to Austria last summer Carol and I are putting together a slide presentation. All is going well except for a correct caption for a slide of the small edelweiss. Looking through our books and on the web I have no less than three forms of its name, all equally well used and from reliable correspondents. The names I have found are: Leontopodium nivale; Leontopodium alpinum ssp. nivale and, surprisingly (to me) Leontopodium nivale ssp. alpinum. Is there a technically correct form of the name or will I just chicken out and go with the first!

[ranunculus]

For what it is worth David, I simply use Leontopodium nivale when discussing the lovely little form with spoon-shaped leaves that we find in the Dolomites.

[hadacekf]

David,
In Austria grow only Leontopodium alpinum. I know it is variable.

[Sinchets]

Ingwerson's 'Manual of Alpine Plants' says that L.alpinum crassense and L.alpinum nivale are names given to two condensed forms from eastern Europe. Maybe it is just a catch-all name for any dwarfer forms wherever they are found.

[Carlo]

The powers that be at RHS list it as Leontopodium alpinum ssp. nivale.