Besen-Radmelde
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Besen-Radmelde ( Bassia scoparia ) |
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| Bassia scoparia | ||||||||||||
| ( L. ) AJ Scott |
The Besen-Radmelde ( Bassia scoparia ), also called Besenkraut or Summer Cypress , is a species of plant in the foxtail family (Amaranthaceae). While it is valued as an ornamental and versatile crop in several countries , it is considered an environmentally harmful invasive plant in some regions .
description
Vegetative characteristics
The Besen-Radmelde grows as an annual herbaceous plant that reaches heights of about 30 to 150 cm (rarely 210 cm). It can root through a soil volume of 2.4 m deep and up to 4.9 m in diameter. The upright stems are densely branched with protruding-upright lateral branches, so that the plant often appears conical in outline. Depending on the place of growth, the morphological features are very variable. The stems are green or reddish in color and usually have short, downy hairs. The alternately arranged leaves are sessile or narrowed at the base into a very short petiole. The leaf blade is usually 2 to 5.5 (rarely up to 8) cm and a width of 4 to 9 mm linear-elliptical and entire, with one to five protruding leaf veins . They are usually hairy on the underside and almost bald on the top.
Inflorescence and flower
The inflorescences consist of numerous lateral or terminal, somewhat compressed, annual partial inflorescences . The flowers sit individually or in twos or threes in the armpits of ascending, upright, linear, often long ciliate bracts .
The hermaphrodite flowers are very small with a diameter of only about 1.1 mm. They are bare at the base or have weak eyelashes, or have a 2 mm long dense ring of hair at the base ( Bassia scoparia subsp. Densiflora ). The bracts are connected in the lower half, their tips are bent inward. The color of the bracts can be green, white or pink. There are three to five stamens and one ovary with two 1.2 mm long stigmas. Occasionally all-female flowers are also found.
The flowering period extends from July to October.
Fruits and seeds
At the time of fruiting, the perianth has very short, herbaceous, wing-like appendages that are not separated from each other. The horizontal seed remains enclosed by the inflorescence. The brown or black seed has an oval shape with a diameter of about 1.1 mm.
Chromosome number
The number of chromosomes is 2n = 18.
Photosynthetic pathway and leaf anatomy
The Besen-Radmelde is a C 4 plant . Your photosynthetic pathway uses the NADP - malate enzyme . The anatomy of the leaves corresponds to the "cochioid type", the cotyledons , on the other hand, have the originally considered "atriplicoid type".
ecology
The Besen-Radmelde is a light germ . It germinates early in the year as soon as the top centimeters of the soil are frost-free and the soil temperature reaches 10 ° C. The seedlings tolerate light frost. This allows this species to take advantage of the limited soil moisture in dry regions. If the soil is moist enough, additional seeds can germinate several times during the growth period. Germination can take place even under stress from drought, with high salt content or extreme pH values in the soil.
Newly formed seeds can germinate immediately without a resting phase. However, the germinability decreases very quickly: after one year the germination rate is only about five percent, after three years even only one percent.
The flowers are pollinated mostly by the wind, occasionally also by animals, mainly insects. Self-pollination rarely occurs.
When the fruit ripens, the whole plant can break off at the base and be blown away by the wind as a “ tumbleweed ”. This allows their seeds to be spread over greater distances. The seed production is very variable depending on the environmental conditions. When plants are grown and well fertilized, 2,000 to 30,000 seeds can be formed per plant. The propagation of the Besen-Radmelde takes place exclusively through seeds, there is no vegetative propagation.
The seeds of the Besen-Radmelde provide food for songbirds.
The whole plant is also eaten by the roe deer.
Some insect species use the broom-wheel as food or host plants. The plants are usually only slightly affected.
The Besen-Radmelde can be attacked by the fungus Aphanomyces cochlioides Drechsler. This species causes damage to sugar beet growing by turning the roots black.
Occurrence
The original distribution of the Besen-Radmelde is in Eastern Europe and Asia . Introduced in the nineteenth century as an ornamental plant , it has now spread throughout Europe, Africa, the western and northern United States, Canada, and South America. In 1990 it was introduced to Australia, but there it is to be eradicated again through an intensive control program. In Germany, this species is considered a naturalized neophyte .
The Besen-Radmelde occurs in a wide climatic range, but it is particularly adapted to dry ( arid and semi-arid) habitats, such as the prairie provinces of Canada and the Great Plains of the USA. It also tolerates shallow soils and high salinity (facultative alkali halophyte ). It can even thrive on acidic soils that contain aluminum or manganese .
The Besen-Radmelde grows in fields, on disturbed areas, in gardens, on roadsides or on the edge of ditches. In dry (arid) regions, it also penetrates into gaps in pastureland and meadows. In Germany it is considered a warmth-loving species, here it grows in fields and short-lived weed meadows , especially in the Sisymbrion association .
Systematics
The first publication was made of this kind in 1753 by Carl Linnaeus under the name Chenopodium scoparium L. Species Plantarum , 1, S. 221st Andrew John Scott put it in 1978 in Feddes Repertorium , 81 (2-3), p. 108 under the name Bassia scoparia in the genus Bassia . Phylogenetic studies by Kadereit & Freitag confirmed this assignment in 2011.
Synonyms of Bassia scoparia (L.) AJScott are Chenopodium scoparium L. , Atriplex scoparia (L.) Crantz , Salsola scoparia (L.) M.Bieb. , Bushiola scoparia (L.) Nieuwl. , Kochia scoparia (L.) Schrad. , Kochia sieversiana (Pall.) CAMey. , Kochia scoparia var. Densiflora Moq. , Kochia densiflora auct. and Kochia alata Bates .
Bassia scoparia belongs to the Bassia / Camphorosma clade in the tribe Camphorosmeae within the subfamily Camphorosmoideae of the foxtail family (Amaranthaceae). It used to belong to the goosefoot family (Chenopodiaceae), these are now included in the foxtail family.
There are two subspecies of Bassia scoparia in Germany :
- Bassia scoparia subsp. scoparia , the common broom-wheel message
- Bassia scoparia subsp. densiflora (Turcz. ex BDJackson) Ciruja & Velayos , the dense-flowered broom-cyclist or summer cypress
use
Ornamental plant
In many countries, the Broom-Radmelde is rarely used as an ornamental plant in gardens. It is used as a leaf decoration and design element in herbaceous borders and to design small hedges. It is also called summer cypress because of its often densely conical shape. There are several horticultural varieties, for example the green 'Childsii' and the 'Trichophylla', which turns red in autumn.
Fodder plant
The Besen-Radmelde is considered a fodder plant for all types of livestock , it can be grazed or fed as hay. The nutritional value of the immature plant is compared to that of alfalfa . The seeds have a high protein content and are therefore suitable as poultry feed.
On the other hand, this species can also be poisonous and cause, for example, polioencephalomalacia and light allergies in cattle. If eaten in large quantities, it can even be fatal to cattle, sheep, and horses. It contains toxic acting saponins , alkaloids , oxalates and nitrates , whose amount increases especially in times of drought and seed maturation. Therefore, Bassia scoparia should not make up more than half of the cattle feed. In order to prevent poisoning, direct grazing of pure stands is only advisable in alternation with other areas or when grazing pauses for several months.
The harvest for hay or silage should be made before the seeds ripen. With irrigation and fertilization , four harvests per year are possible. The hay yields are between 2.25 and 16 tons per hectare , depending on the region .
Food plant
In Japan, the seeds of Bassia scoparia (Japanese Hosagi) are considered a traditional delicacy ( Chimmi ). For the “tomburi”, also called “land caviar”, the dried seeds are soaked in cold water for a day, then the outer shell is rubbed off and the seeds are boiled. In China, people eat the fresh fruit. A flour made from the seeds is also used. The young leaves are eaten cooked as a vegetable, but should not be consumed in large quantities because of their toxic saponin content .
The seeds contain 20.4-27.5% protein, 8.8-16% fat and 3.4-9.4% minerals . The dried leaves contain 21.5% protein, 2.4% fat, 56.8% carbohydrates, 19.7% fiber and 19.2% minerals.
Soil protection
Bassia scoparia is suitable as erosion protection for rapid re-greening, for example after the vegetation has been destroyed by fire. This is due to their ability to survive on shallow, sandy, salty or alkaline soils, and also to be tolerant of drought or being eaten by locusts . It can germinate during the entire vegetation period and quickly provides effective soil cover. In subsequent years, which will plant cover of Bassia scoparia competition stronger by mostly replaced perennial grasses.
Bassia scoparia can be used for the phytoremediation of polluted and contaminated soils. It absorbs more chromium , lead , mercury , selenium , silver and zinc from the soil and accumulates them in its plant parts (hyperaccumulator). It also accumulates the radioactive cesium -137 and uranium . It can also be used to remediate soils that have been contaminated by hydrocarbons .
Medicinal plant and phytochemistry
In Chinese and Korean folk medicine , Bassia scoparia has been used as a remedy for skin diseases , diabetes , rheumatoid arthritis , liver damage, and jaundice .
In phytochemical investigations ingredients were discovered in the seeds, which medical in cancer , rheumatoid arthritis and bacterial infectious diseases are effective.
The seeds of Bassia scoparia contain an insect attractant ( pheromone ) which mosquito - pesticides may be added.
Other uses
Brooms were made from the plant in many countries , for example in Italy, Bulgaria, Macedonia, Romania, Russia and China. This is what the German name Besen-Radmelde refers to.
In northeast China this species is used as nesting material for silkworms .
Invasive species
In a suitable climate, Bassia scoparia spreads so much that it can displace the natural vegetation . For this reason, it is considered an environmentally harmful invasive plant in some regions . As a “ weed ” , it can also overgrow the cultivated crops , which greatly reduces the yield. This particularly affects the cultivation of sugar beet , potatoes , alfalfa and wheat . Bassia scoparia also prevents the growth of other plants (both its own species and other species) in its immediate vicinity by excreting allelopathic substances from their roots .
In the USA, Bassia scoparia was introduced as an ornamental plant in the second half of the 19th century and spread there extremely quickly from 1880 to 1980. Bassia scoparia is one of the most common annual weeds in Kansas, Nebraska, the Great Plains and Southern Canada's Prairie Provinces . Several states (Connecticut, Ohio, Oregon, Washington) have now classified this species as a harmful weed and have banned its planting.
Combating with herbicides is often unsuccessful because the chemicals do not have their full effect due to the hair and wax on the surface of the plant. Younger plants are most likely to be affected. Some populations in the USA, Canada and also in the Czech Republic were even found to be resistant to several common herbicides. This makes it difficult to control this species once it has colonized an area.
In Australia, Bassia scoparia was introduced in 1990 as a forage plant and for the re-greening of salinated agricultural areas. Due to its efficient water consumption, it grows here in warm areas with little rainfall . However, it got out of control very quickly and was declared a weed in 1992 and placed on the "alarm list for environmentally harmful weeds". An intensive extermination program is supposed to drive them out of Australia again. Importation and any planting are prohibited. Weed control management instructions are published on the Internet, and a call is made to report all occurrences of this species.
In Switzerland, the Besen-Radmelde is listed on the "Watch List of Invasive Alien Plants" of the Commission for the Conservation of Wild Plants.
literature
- Henning Haeupler , Thomas Muer: picture atlas of the fern and flowering plants of Germany (= the fern and flowering plants of Germany. Volume 2). Published by the Federal Agency for Nature Conservation. Ulmer, Stuttgart 2000, ISBN 3-8001-3364-4 , p. 94 (section description, subspecies).
- P. Allan Casey: Plant guide for Kochia (Kochia scoparia) . - USDA-Natural Resources Conservation Service, Kansas Plant Materials Center . Manhattan, KS, 2009. (PDF file, 180 kB) (Sections description, distribution and habitat, biology, ecology, use, invasive species)
- ME EDGE: Kochia . - In: Karl Heinz Rechinger et al. (Ed.): Flora Iranica , Volume 172 - Chenopodiaceae . Graz, Akad. Druck, 1997, pp. 108-109. (Section description)
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b Entry at BiolFlor.
- ↑ a b c d Gudrun Kadereit & Helmut Freitag: Molecular phylogeny of Camphorosmeae (Camphorosmoideae, Chenopodiaceae): Implications for biogeography, evolution of C4-photosynthesis and taxonomy , In: Taxon , Volume 60 (1), 2011, pp. 51-78 .
- ↑ R. Muhaidat, RF Sage, NG Dengler: Diversity of coronary anatomy and biochemistry in C4 eudicots . In: American Journal of Botany , Volume 94, 2007, p. 371 and p. 376. doi : 10.3732 / ajb.94.3.362
- ↑ a b Besen-Radmelde. In: FloraWeb.de.
- ↑ First publication scanned at biodiversitylibrary.org
- ↑ Entry in FDA Poisonous Plants Database
- ↑ Entry in Plants for a Future .
- ^ McCutcheon & Schnoor: Phytoremediation . New Jersey, John Wiley, 2003, p. 898
- ^ Entry in Mansfeld's encyclopedia of agricultural and horticultural crops
- ↑ Entry at USDA Agricultural Research Service
- ^ Alert List for Environmental Weeds, Australia
- ^ Weed Alert Kochia at NSW Government
- ↑ Call for a find report at Weed Australia ( Memento of the original from May 6, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Swiss Commission for the Conservation of Wild Plants ( Memento of the original dated November 18, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (PDF; 88 kB)
Web links
- Besen-Radmelde. In: FloraWeb.de.
- Distribution map of the Besen-Radmelde in Germany at FloraWeb.
- Bassia scoparia (L.) Voss In: Info Flora , the national data and information center for Swiss flora . Retrieved October 7, 2015.
- Thomas Meyer: Data sheet with identification key and photos at Flora-de: Flora von Deutschland (old name of the website: Flowers in Swabia )
- Seed and fruit photos in the Digital Zadenatlas van Nederland.