Pollen morphology of Hymenosphace and Aethiopis sections of the genus Salvia (Lamiaceae) in Turkey

Palynological characteristics of 30 Salvia taxa in sections Hymenosphace and Aethiopis from Turkey were investigated by light and scanning electron microscopy. S. aethiopis (sect. Aethiopis) has the smallest pollen while S. blepharochlaena (sect. Hymenosphace) has the largest pollen. The basic shape of the pollen grains in most taxa is suboblate, oblate-spheroidal, or prolate-spheroidal to spheroidal; however, subprolate pollen grains are occasionally are found in S. cassia of sect. Aethiopis. Hexacolpate pollen is dominant in all studied taxa, but heptacolpate and octacolpate pollen grains are mixed together in S. palaestina (heptacolpate, 20%) and S. candidissima subsp. candidissima (heptacolpate, 2% and octacolpate, 40%). The exine sculpturing is bireticulate (the common type) or reticulate-perforate. The bireticulate and the reticulate-perforate sculpturing patterns can be divided into subtypes according to the number of primary lumina. Taxonomic implications of the pollen data are also discussed.