Sparse or discontinuous xerophile grasslands of Stipa pennata, Festuca auquieri (Festuca duriuscula), Festuca hervieri, Koeleria vallesiana or Sesleria albicans var. elegantissima with Helianthemum apenninum, Helianthemum canum, Genista spp., Globularia spp., Ononis striata, Euphorbia seguierana, Potentilla crantzii, Thymus dolomiticus, Plantago argentea, Rosa pimpinellifolia, Dianthus sylvestris, Lavandula angustifolia, Aster alpinus, Anthyllis spp., Carex humilis, best developed in the Causses, but also present locally in Provence and Languedoc, from the Alps to Catalonia.
Open formations with Artemisia alba and Hyssopus officinalis, rich in chamaephytes, of eroded steep slopes of the Causses (France), harbouring, in particular, Convolvulus cantabrica and Allium flavum; similar formations of the southwestern Alps appear best included in the subcontinental steppe-grasslands (unit E1.24).