Delicious window leaf
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Delicious window leaf ( Monstera deliciosa ) |
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As Delicious window leaf ( Monstera deliciosa ) a species of the genus is the window leaves ( Monstera ) in the family of Araceae designated (Araceae).
description
The delicious window leaf is an evergreen climbing plant that can grow to be several meters high. The young leaves are heart-shaped and undivided. The fully grown leaves are large and slashed with holes. The German name "Fensterblatt" is derived from this. The leaves are leathery. Older plants develop aerial roots.
The inflorescences are similar to those of the arum , but larger. They are surrounded by a large bract. The piston-shaped fruit stands are roughly comparable in size and shape to corn cobs and are surrounded by a shell of hexagonal, initially dark green, internally white plates. As they ripen, the hexagonal peel plates turn light green. The inside of the cobs is edible and tasty. The creamy white pulp has a taste of pineapple and banana. Only ripe fruit bunches should be consumed, since with the conversion of starch into sugar, the content of calcium oxalate crystals , which irritate the mucous membrane and cause a scratchy feeling on the lips, mouth and throat, also decreases. The hexagonal peel plates gradually detach from the fruit cluster from bottom to top. This also occurs with the fruit that has been separated from the rest of the plant.
The number of chromosomes is 2n = 56, 58 or 60.
distribution
The home of the delicious window leaf is in tropical America. The distribution area extends from Mexico with the states of Oaxaca , Veracruz and Chiapas south to Guatemala , Honduras , Costa Rica and Panama .
Meanwhile, overgrown plants can also be found in North America ( Florida ), Asia ( Malaysia , India ), Australia and in the western Mediterranean area ( Portugal , Morocco , Madeira ).
use
The delicious window leaf is a very popular houseplant . The first Monstera plants reached Europe from Mexico at the beginning of the 19th century. It has been cultivated in European nurseries since 1848.
The air roots that form can be introduced into aquariums. The plant removes toxins such as nitrate and nitrite from the aquarium water and uses them as food.
In some countries, the edible fruits are mostly sold in markets (for example in Madeira under the name "pineapple banana").
Botanical forms and cultivars
Of Monstera deliciosa , there may be at least two, three botanical forms. It has not been clearly established whether these are forms, varieties or subspecies. In addition to the typical form with relatively dense growth and large leaves, there is a form called Monstera deliciosa Liemb. var. borsigiana (C. Koch ex Engl.) Engl. & Krause is called. While the typical form has short internodes, leaves up to 1 m in size with several rows of holes and usually grows as a perennial on the ground without climbing, the second form shows a completely different appearance. The leaves remain significantly smaller at approx. 40 cm and have fewer holes, which are only arranged in one or two rows on each half of the leaf. This form has much longer internodes and usually grows in the form of a climbing plant as a young plant. There are mentions of a form called Monstera deliciosa 'Tauerii', but there is no information about this plant in reputable sources, so it is questionable whether this form actually exists and what it could be from a botanical point of view.
In addition to the completely green forms of this species, there are also several variegated cultivars.
- 'Variegata' or 'Albo-Variegata': This type of variegation exists in both the large and the small form. The leaves of these cultivars are variegated white-green. The white areas are variable in size. They can be very large and in some cases individual leaves are completely white. The plants are cell chimeras in which the proportions of green and white cells fluctuate continuously and are dependent on the distribution in the apical meristem. These plants can become completely white (and non-viable) or completely green permanently, completely randomly.
- 'Thai Constellation' (also found under the trade name 'Salt & Pepper' in the USA): This is also a variegated variety, but the spots are significantly smaller than with 'Variegata' and extensive areas without chlorophyll are rare. In contrast to the 'Variegata', the light areas are not pure white, but pale yellowish or cream-colored. This variety was made in Thailand through genetic modification so that although the plants still have variable variegation, this is genetically anchored and stable so that there can never be a complete loss of chlorophyll or a complete loss of variegation. It is not known exactly which of the forms was used for this. However, the growth resembles the typical shape.
- 'Aurea': The variety is also known as 'Marmorata' under the outdated name. As with 'Variegata', the leaves are variegated, but the spots are not white, but yellow. This variety is also available both in the typical form and in M. d. borsigiana .
- 'Esmeralda': This is a new variety (originated in 2019?). The variegation of these plants is light yellowish green. This variety is only available from M. d. borsigiana known.
photos
as a houseplant
Trunk cutting with 1st shoot (left) and 6th shoot (right) after cutting off shoots 1 ... 5
inflorescence
immature fruit clusters
Ripe fruit clusters
Hexagonal peel plates detach themselves. The pulp around the stalk is edible.
literature
- Johannes Seidemann: The window leaf Monstera deliciosa - a little-known fruit plant . Naturwissenschaftliche Rundschau 58 (2), pp. 70-73, ISSN 0028-1050
Web links
- On the toxicity of the window leaf
- Plant description at zimmerpflanze.info
- Entry at GRIN Taxonomy for Plants (Engl.)
Individual evidence
- ^ Tropicos. [1]
- ^ A b Rafaël Govaerts (ed.): Monstera - World Checklist of Selected Plant Families of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Last accessed on June 17, 2018.
- ↑ Dericks-Tan, Vollbrecht: On the trail of wild fruits in Europe . Abadi-Verlag 2009, ISBN 978-3-00-021129-4 , p. 215.
- ↑ GBIF entry. Global Biodiversity Information Facility, accessed on August 15, 2020 .