Lycium intricatum Boiss.
Spa.: Cambronera. Fre.: Lyciet intriqué. Ara.: Ausedj, ghardeq, r’ardâq, amsed. Tam.: inzzriki, inezzerki, ossis.
Shrub, ± deciduous, hermaphrodite, up to 1.5(2) m in height, highly ramose and spiny, with usually intricate branching. Branches ending in strong spines; lateral spines similar, very sharp, with leaves. Bark greyish-brown, sometimes greyish-whitish, fissured along the main stems and older branches. Branchlets brownish, chestnut-reddish or greyish. Leaves fasciculate, highly polymorphic, depending on the habitat and grazing pressure. Leaves can be minute (0.5 × 0.2 cm), subcylindrical or subglobose, very fleshy; or considerably larger when fully developed (up to 7-1.5 cm), linear or linear-lanceolate, fleshy; always shortly petiolate, glabrous, matt green on both sides. Flowers solitary or in pairs, axillary. Calyx green, shortly tubular, ending in 5 short, equal teeth. Corolla violet or purple, with long narrow tube, ending in 5 small lobes opened in the shape of a star; lobes 4-5 times shorter than the tube. Stamens included. Fruit a small red globose berry, with persistent calyx.
Flowering:
December to May, although it is not unusual to see flowers in other months of the year.
Fruiting:
About 2-3 months after flowering. It is not unusual to see flowers and mature fruits at the same time.
Habitat:
Thickets, rocky outcrops, slopes, sandy and saline terrains in very dry, semiarid, and even desert areas, littoral and sublittoral areas, watercourses, and the outer perimeter of saltmarshes; resistant to sea mist and to nitrification by bird droppings, it is frequently found in islands and sea cliffs.
Distribution:
Western Mediterranean. In North Africa it is native to the coastal and subcoastal Mediterranean region, from western Algeria to the Tingitana Peninsula. Through the Atlantic coast it reaches Mauritania. Further inland it penetrates to the steppes of eastern Morocco and proximities of Béchar.
Observations:
As this is a subtropical plant in origin, leaves are frequently born in autumn and fall in late spring or summer. However in this area the species follows rainfall conditions, losing leaves in any season after a prolonged drought and forming new leaves within a few weeks after a period of rain or a good downpour.
Conservation status:
Common and widespread species. Currently, it has not been assessed at a global level in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.