Shrub-Melde
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Shrub melde ( Atriplex halimus ) |
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| Atriplex halimus | ||||||||||||
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The shrub melde ( Atriplex halimus ) is a species of plant in the foxtail family (Amaranthaceae). The natural range of this halophytic species is in the entire Mediterranean area and on the Atlantic coast of southwest Europe , as well as on the Canary Islands .
description
Vegetative characteristics
The Strauch-Melde is an upright, heavily branched shrub with a stature height of 0.5 to 2 (rarely 3) meters. The young twigs are blunt-edged, older twigs have a gray-white, peeling bark.
The alternate, 0.3 to 1 cm short stalked leaves reach a length of 1 to 4 (rarely up to 6) cm and a width of 0.5 to 3 (rarely up to 5) cm. Their silvery-white, almost leathery leaf blade is elongated-ovate to ovate-rhombic, with entire margins or shallowly lobed, with a wedge-shaped, truncated or almost spike-shaped base. The tip of the leaf is blunt, sometimes with a small point or with margins. The upper leaves are lanceolate.
Inflorescence and flower
The flowering period extends from June to October. The Strauch-Melde is single sexed ( monoecious ). The terminal, long, almost leafless, pseudo-panicle total inflorescences contain multi-flowered, clustered partial inflorescences and form somewhat crowded lateral and terminal pseudo-annual partial inflorescences . The male flowers, which are often present in smaller numbers, have five very small, membranous bracts ( tepals ). Female flowers that only the ovary included are enveloped by two continue reading .
Fruit and seeds
The numerous fruits, covered by their bracts, are crowded and often splayed horizontally on the inflorescence axis. The thickened and coarse prophylls, which are only connected at the base, reach a length of 3.5 to 4 mm and a width of 5 to 6 mm. Their shape is kidney-shaped, broadly ovate to almost rounded, with entire to weakly serrated. There are no appendages on the back.
The dark brown seed has a diameter of about 1.5 mm.
Chromosome number
The number of chromosomes is 2n = 18, in an examination 2n = 36 is also given.
Photosynthetic pathway
The shrub-melde is a C 4 plant with a wreath anatomy .
ecology
The shrub-reporting serves as a food plant for the caterpillars of coleophoridae Coleophora crassicornella , Coleophora parthenica , Coleophora plurifoliella and Coleophora serinipennella and the gelechiidae Apatetris halimilignella , Chrysoesthia gaditella , Chrysoesthia halymella and Scrobipalpa halymella . The pterophoridae Agdistis heydenii , the corn borer Christophia semi rosella and Hypotia leonalis and scythrididae Eretmocera nomadica and Scythris orbi della feed on this plant species. In Flora Iranica (Hedge 1997), plant galls are mentioned on Atriplex halimus .
Occurrence
The shrub melde has its natural range in the entire Mediterranean area and on the Atlantic coast of southwest Europe , as well as on the Canary Islands . It is also naturalized in Madeira and the Channel Islands , and as an introduced species in Great Britain . Cultivated as a fodder plant, it occurs in many dry regions, for example in Iran .
Sand and rocky coasts as well as inland salt areas are preferred as locations ( halophyte ).
Systematics
The shrub melde ( Atriplex halimus ) is a C 4 plant within the genus Atriplex of the C 4 atriplex clade.
The first publication of Atriplex halimus was made in 1753 by Carl Linnaeus in Species Plantarum 2, p 1,052th
Synonyms of Atriplex halimus L. are Atriplex halimoides Tineo , Atriplex kataf Ehrenb. ex Boiss. , Atriplex parvifolia Pau (nom. Illeg.), Atriplex serrulata Pau , Chenopodium halimus (L.) Thunb. and Schizotheca halimus (L.) Fourr.
use
Food plant
The leaves of the Strauch-Melde can be prepared raw in salads or cooked as vegetables like spinach. If they are only lightly steamed, they will keep their crunchy texture. They should taste pleasantly salty, even if the plants grow on inland soil that is not salty.
The seeds can also be eaten cooked. Ground, they can be used to thicken food or as a flour additive when baking bread. However, harvesting the small seeds is tedious. In addition, the sap is said to provide an edible “manna”.
Fodder plant
In many dry regions, the shrub-melde is cultivated as a forage plant for grazing.
Medicinal plant
The Strauch-Melde is used medicinally as a carminative against flatulence. The ashes of the sprouts provide a powder to neutralize stomach acid ( antacid ).
Other uses
The ashes of the burnt shrub are used as alkali to make soap .
Planted as a hedge , the Shrub-Melde offers good wind protection, especially on the coasts. Such hedges can grow uncut, but the plants can just as easily tolerate pruning, even into the old wood.
Since the plants absorb the salt from the soil, this type is also used for the regeneration ( phytoremediation ) of saline soils .
The shrub-melde is used as an ornamental plant .
literature
- Ingrid Schönfelder, Peter Schönfelder : Kosmos Atlas Mediterranean and Canary Islands flora. Over 1600 species of plants . 2nd Edition. Franckh-Kosmos, Stuttgart 2002, ISBN 3-440-09361-1 .
- Ian C. Hedge: Atriplex halimus . In: Karl Heinz Rechinger et al. (Ed.): Flora Iranica , Volume 172 - Chenopodiaceae . Graz, Akad. Druck, 1997, pp. 84-85. (Sections Description, Occurrence, Forage Plant)
Individual evidence
- ↑ Atriplex halimus L. In: Tropicos.org. Missouri Botanical Garden. Retrieved March 27, 2018 .
- ↑ a b Gudrun Kadereit, Evgeny V. Mavrodiev, Elizabeth H. Zacharias, Alexander P. Sukhorukov: Molecular phylogeny of Atripliceae (Chenopodioideae, Chenopodiaceae): Implications for systematics, biogeography, flower and fruit evolution, and the origin of C4 Photosynthesis . In: American Journal of Botany . tape 97 , no. 10 , 2010, p. 1664-1687 (English).
- ↑ Gaden S. Robinson, Phillip R. Ackery, Ian J. Kitching, George W. Beccaloni and Luis M. Hernánde: Search Results: Hostplant Family: Chenopodiaceae, Hostplant Genus: Atriplex, Hostplant Species: halimus. In: HOSTS - The Hostplants and Caterpillars Database. Natural History Museum, London, accessed March 27, 2018 .
- ^ Pertti Uotila: Chenopodiaceae (pro parte majore) . - In: Euro + Med Plantbase - the information resource for Euro-Mediterranean plant diversity. Atriplex halimus 2011. Entry at Euro + Med Plantbase .
- ↑ Carl von Linné, Lars Salvius: Caroli Linnaei ... Species plantarum: exhibentes plantas rite cognitas, ad genera relatas, cum differentiis specificis, nominibus trivialibus, synonymis selectis, locis natalibus, secundum systema sexuale digestas ... Volume 2 , 1753, pp. 1052 (Latin, biodiversitylibrary.org [accessed March 27, 2018]).
- ↑ Rating at The Plant List
- ↑ a b c d e Entry in Plants For A Future
- ↑ Entry in Liber Herbarum
