Genista Linnaeus (1753: 709) is a large genus of spiny and non-spiny shrubs including over 90 species, mainly distributed in the Mediterranean region but also represented throughout most of western and central Europe, and extending to the southeast of the former USSR, Turkey, Syria and North Africa. The genus is usually arranged into three subgenera and 10 sections (Gibbs 1966, 1968). Among these, Genista subg. Spartocarpus Spach (1844: 240) is widespread in the Balkan Peninsula and the eastern Mediterranean, but has a secondary centre in the Balearic Islands, Sardinia, Sicily, north Africa, and southern Spain (Pardo et al. 2004). According to the most recent generic revision (Gibbs 1966), G. subg. Spartocarpus includes four sections: sect. Spartocarpus,sect. Acanthospartum Spach (1844: 247), sect. Fasselospartum Gibbs(1966: 20) and sect. Cephalospartum Spach (1844: 254).