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Ferula pisidica is a novel endemic species found in the vicinity of Karaman province of inner Mediterranean Region of Turkey. F. pisidica is morphologically distinct from F. haussknechtii and F. brevipedicellata by habit, sheaths, terminal leaf lobes, and mericarp size as well as by chemotaxonomic differences. The new species is described by morphological, carpological, ecological and phytochemical characteristics. Its relationships with the other related species and proposed conservation status will be reviewed.

To explore if fruit morphology could aid in taxonomy of the genus Pimpinella L., we have undertaken a study of fruits from 26 Turkish taxa of Pimpinella using light and scanning electron microscopy—SEM—. A great deal of inter and intraspecific variation for both fruit shape and surface was observed. Fruit shapes of Turkish taxa of Pimpinella range from oblong-cylindrical to subglobose and indumentum when present can be strigose, hispid and may include hamate trichomes. Variation in fruit surface is also considerable and allows recognizing nine different ornamentation patterns. However, variation in shape, surface ornamentation and indumentum is not tightly associated since species with similar fruit shapes do not necessarily have similar surface ornamentation. To jointly analyse fruit morphology together with the most commonly used morphological characters of the whole plant and to compare morphological evidence with available phylogenetic hypotheses, a cluster analysis was also performed: the Turkish species of Pimpinella were clustered into two distinct groups, the second one subdivided in another two subgroups.

Turkey has one of the richest plant diversities in the Mediterranean region. In the current literature, no broad screening has been conducted on the potential allelopathy of plants from Turkey. This study aimed to evaluate the allelopathic activity of a large number of plants from Turkey for the first time and to determine the species with significant plant growth inhibitory potentials by bioassay. Dried samples of different plant parts were collected from local herbalists. The sandwich method was used to evaluate the potential allelopathy of 126 medicinal plants belonging to 55 families. The results of lettuce radicle and hypocotyl growth for 10 and 50 mg sample treatment conformed to normal distribution. Significant inhibition on lettuce radicle elongation with 10 mg sample was observed in 40 species, out of which 27 species showed over 50% inhibitory activity. The results suggested that these species could contain potential inhibitory compounds against lettuce radicle or hypocotyl growth. The calyxes of Hibiscus sabdariffa (3.2% of control) and the seeds of Prunus dulcis (5.7% of control) showed the most potent growth inhibitory activity on lettuce radicle elongation. The potential plant growth inhibitory effects of these plants, together with the fruits of Rhus coriaria and seeds of Prunus mahaleb, have been reported in this study for the first time. All these plants are medicinal, and the results hereby presented provide essential information about the allelopathic effects of medicinal plants from Turkey.