Oxalis triangularis, commonly called false shamrock, is a species of edible perennial plant in the Oxalidaceae family. It is endemic to Brazil. This woodsorrel is typically grown as a houseplant but can be grown outside in USDA climate zones 8a–11, preferably in light shade.
The subspecies O. triangularis subsp. papilionacea, in particular its cultivar 'Triangularis', is highly popular as a pot plant and known as love plant and purple shamrock.
Indoor Care:
They require bright or direct sunlight supplemented with a cool indoor temperature of ~15 degrees Celsius (~60 degrees Fahrenheit). They can tolerate higher indoor temperatures but will go into dormancy prematurely and/or begin to take on a "tired" appearance if temperatures go above 27 degrees Celsius (~80 degrees Fahrenheit) for prolonged periods of time. Use average potting soil with good drainage and allow the surface soil to dry out between waterings.
Mature False Shamrock plants are cut back to the soil every 3–5 years in early summer or during the dormancy period. Young plants are cut back to the soil every year in early summer or during the dormancy period, until they reach maturity.
Oxalis triangularis are plants that grow from bulbs, and their propagation is done by division of the bulbs. Like other bulbs, the oxalis go through dormancy periods on a regular basis; at the end of such period, the bulbs can be unearthed, sidebulbs cut and replanted in appropriate soil, where they will grow into new plants.
The leaves of O. triangularis move in response to light levels, opening in high ambient light (in the day) and closing at low light levels (at night). This movement is not due to growth and is instead powered by changes in turgor pressure in cells at the base of the leaf. It is an example of photonasty.
Oxalis tuberosa (Oxalidaceae) is a perennial herbaceous plant that overwinters as underground stem tubers. These tubers are known as uqa in Quechua, hispanicized oca, as New Zealand yam and a number of other alternative names. The plant was brought into cultivation in the central and southern Andes for its tubers, which are used as a root vegetable. The plant is not known in the wild, but populations of wild Oxalis species that bear smaller tubers are known from four areas of the central Andean region. Oca was introduced to Europe in 1830 as a competitor to the potato, and to New Zealand as early as 1860.
In New Zealand, oca has become a popular table vegetable and is simply called yam or New Zealand yam (although not a true yam). It is now available in a range of colours, including yellow, orange, pink, apricot, and the traditional red.
Oca is one of the highest vegetable sources of carbohydrate and energy. They are a good source of pro-vitamin A (beta carotene), and also contain potassium, vitamin B6 and small amounts of fibre. Yellow-orange coloured varieties indicate the presence of carotenoids; whilst red skins and red specks in flesh indicate the presence of anthocyanins.
Oca is cultivated primarily for its edible stem tuber, but the leaves and young shoots can be eaten as a green vegetable also. Mature stems can be used similarly to rhubarb. Andean communities have various methods to process and prepare tubers, and in Mexico oca is eaten raw with salt, lemon, and hot pepper. The flavour is often slightly tangy, but there is a considerable degree of difference in flavors between varieties and some are not acidic at all. Texture ranges from crunchy (like a carrot) when raw or undercooked, to starchy or mealy when fully cooked.
The table to the right displays the nutritional content for fresh and dried oca. Oca is a valuable source of vitamin C,potassium (included in value for ash), and iron. It also provides some protein, with valine and tryptophan its limiting amino acids. Cultivars vary greatly in nutritional content, so these measures should be taken only as approximates. It is also high ranks from the nutritional point of view.
Cultivation
Oca is one of the important staple crops of the Andean highlands, due to its easy propagation, and tolerance for poor soil, high altitude and harsh climates.
Distribution
Oca is planted in the Andean region from Venezuela to Argentina, from 2800 to 4100 meters above sea level. Its highest abundance and greatest diversity are in central Peru and northern Bolivia, the probable area of its domestication.
Climate requirements
Oca needs a long growing season, and is day length dependent, forming tubers when the day length shortens in autumn (around March in the Andes). In addition, oca requires climates with average temperatures of approximately 10 to 12 °C (ranging between 4 and 17 °C) and average precipitation of 700 to 885 millimeters per year.
Oca requires short days in order to form tubers. Outside the tropics, it will not begin to form tubers until approximately the autumn equinox. If frosts occur too soon after the autumn equinox, the plant will die before tubers are produced.
Soil requirements
Oca grows with very low production inputs, generally on plots of marginal soil quality, and tolerates acidities between about pH 5.3 and 7.8. In traditional Andean cropping systems, it is often planted after potato and therefore benefits from persisting nutrients applied to, or left over from, the potato crop.
Propagation
Oca is usually propagated vegetatively by planting whole tubers.
Propagation by seed is possible but is rarely used in practice. Sexual propagation is complicated by several factors. First, like many other species in the genus Oxalis, oca flowers exhibit tristylous heterostyly and are consequently subject to auto-incompatibility. Furthermore, on the rare occasion that oca plants do produce fruit, their loculicidal capsules dehisce spontaneously, making it difficult to harvest seed. Oca flowers are pollinated by insects (e.g., genera Apis, Megachile, and Bombus). Data regarding the frequency of volunteer hybrids and farmers’ subsequent incorporation of them has not yet been published.
Cropping factors
Oca tuber-seeds are planted in the Andes in August or September and harvested from April to June. The first flowers bloom around three to four months after planting, and the tubers also begin to form then. Between planting and harvesting, the oca crop requires little tending, except for a couple of weedings and hillings.
Oca is a component of traditional crop rotations and is usually planted in a field directly after the potato harvest. A common sequence in this rotation system may be one year of potato, one year of oca, one year of oats or faba beans, and two to four years fallow. Within this system, q’allpa is a Quechua term that signifies soil previously cultivated and prepared for planting of a new crop.
The cultural practice is similar to potatoes. Planting is done in rows or hills 80–100 cm apart, with plants spaced 40–60 cm apart in the rows. Monoculture predominates, but interplanting with several other tuber species, including mashua and olluco, in one field is common in Andean production. Often this intercoppng consists of several different varieties of each species. Such mixed fields may later be sorted into tuber types during harvest or before cooking.
Harmine found in root secretions of Oxalis tuberosa has been found to have insecticidal properties.
Yields
Yields vary with the cultural method. Annals from Andean countries report about 7-10 tonnes per hectare for Oxalis tuberosa production. But with adequate inputs and virus free propagation material, oca production can range from 35 to 55 tonnes per hectare.
Limitations
Pests and diseases limit the production of oca. Crops in the Andes are often infected with viruses, causing chronic yield depression. Adequate techniques to remove viruses have to be applied before the varieties can be used outside the Andean region. Cultivation is also constrained by the Andean potato weevil (Premnotrypes spp), ulluco weevil (Cylydrorhinus spp), and oca weevil, the identification of which remains uncertain (possibly Adioristidius, Mycrotrypes, or Premnotrypes). These weevils often destroy entire crops. Further notable pests are nematodes.
As already mentioned, both day-length restrictions and the presence of oxalates can also be considered limiting factors. Scientists work with specific breeding, selection, and virus cleaning programs on these purposes.
Agricultural potential
Potential distribution to other suitable ecogeographical zones of, for example, Asia and Africa may be possible. The cultivation and use of a fleshy pink variety of Oxalis tuberosa in New Zealand already indicates a wider utilization and agricultural interest than has been previously recognized.
The aibika (Abelmoschus manihot) is a flowering plant in the mallow family Malvaceae. It was formerly considered a species of Hibiscus, but is now classified in the genus Abelmoschus. The plant is also known as the sunset muskmallow, sunset hibiscus, or hibiscus manihot.
In Japanese, this plant is known as tororo aoi and is used to make neri, a starchy substance used in making washi. In Korean, this plant is known as hwang chok kyu and is used to make dak pul, which assists in making hanji (Korean paper). In the Pacific Islands, the common name for this plant is bele and vauvau and along with taro-leaf spinach, and a wide variety of wild ferns, it is a main green of many villages there.
Although technically a shrub, aibika is a perennial which, under good conditions, can grow to over three meters in height. It is reputedly an extremely nutritious vegetable. Its leaves are very high in vitamins A and C, and iron, and have 12% protein by dry weight. Moreover, it is easily propagated from cuttings, easy to cultivate, relatively disease-resistant and even is considered to be of medicinal value. It is widely planted either along borders of gardens or as an intercrop throughout many traditional gardens in the tropics.
Abelmoschus ficulneus is a species of flowering plant in the genus Abelmoschus, family Malvaceae. Commonly known as white wild musk mallow or native rosella, it is fibrous perennial with a woody stem. Its flowers are about an inch in diameter, either pink or white, with a rose center; its leaves are palmate.
The species grows as a small erect shrub, 2 to 5 ft (1 to 2 m) tall and 2 to 6 ft (1 to 2 m) across. Leaves are 5 to 8 cm (2 to 3 in) long and 4 to 7 cm (2 to 3 in) wide, with a circular shape (heart-shaped near base). Leaves are rough on both sides, toothed, and have 3 to 5 lobes. Flower stock are covered in velvety hair, and the flowers themselves are 5 to 7 cm (2 to 3 in) across. The stocks are short and colored white to pink with a dark purple center. Flowers last a few days. The plant has small hairs which may cause irritation. The plant's seed heads are hairy and sticky, ovalar in shape and 2.5–4 cm (1–2 in) long and 1.3–2 cm (1–1 in) wide, with five ribs and a short beak. Seeds that are still in their growth period are medium to dark green, and when they are mature they turn dark brown, and split into five parts to release 10 to 20 brown to black spherical seeds, covered in tiny hairs.
Abelmoschus ficulneus germinates in the spring and summer months, after the effects of rainfall and irrigation have set in. The plant grows rapidly over spring and summer several months after emergence, through autumn. Mature seeds are produced within a month of flowering in the late summer and autumn seasons.
The species is native to India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Madagascar and also northern Australia where it has become a common crop weed, particularly in cotton.
Bryonia alba (white bryony, wild hop) is a vigorous vine in the family Cucurbitaceae (squashes and melons) from Europe and Northern Iran. It has a growth habit similar to kudzu, which gives it a highly destructive potential outside its native range as a noxious weed.
An herbaceous, perennial vine of the cucumber family, white bryony is monoecious but diclinous (separate male and female flowers found on the same plant) with a tuberous yellow root. Greenish-white flowers are 1 cm (0.39 in) across. Long curling tendrils, flowers, and fruit all stem from axils of palmately lobed leaves.The fruit is a 1.5 cm (0.59 in) berry which blackens as it ripens.
All parts of Bryonia alba contain bryonin which is poisonous and may cause illness or death. Livestock may also be poisoned by consuming the fruit and leaves. Forty berries constitutes a lethal dose for adult humans.
Outside of its native range, this vine is often a very aggressive invasive weed. It can produce three vines at a time, which each grow up to 15 cm (5.9 in) per day. It has a climbing growth pattern similar to kudzu, and will grow into a dense mat when it cannot climb. Once established, it will climb other plants and trees as well as fences and buildings, blocking the sun and even rain from its host. Winter snow or heavy rains weighing down the mat of foliage create extra weight, leading to breakage of host limbs or even felling of entire host trees.
Control of white bryony usually involves manual pulling and very frequent removal of new growth; diligence being the key to success. Plants may be killed manually by severing the roots 7–10 cm (2.8–3.9 in) below ground surface to remove the crown and prevent re-sprouting. Tillage is often ineffective and can harm host plant roots, but broadleaf herbicides such as glyphosate can be useful when care is taken not to spray host plant leaves. Multiple applications are necessary to eventually move herbicide to the root and block production of new shoots. The dispersed seeds are viable for many years, so manually removing B. alba before seed production is important.
Cassytha pubescens is a native Australian hemiparasitic vine species, in the Laurel family. Common names for the species include devils twine, dodder-laurel, spilled devil’s twine or downy dodder-laurel. It is a widespread and common species in south eastern Australia .The species was first formally described in 1810 by the Scottish botanist Robert Brown in Prodromus Flora Novae Hollandiae et Insulae Van Diemen (Prodromus of the Flora of New Holland and Van Diemen’s Land). Leaves are reduced to scales and photosynthesis is achieved through chlorophyll contained in the plants stems. Stems are between 0.5mm and 1.5mm in diameter and the haustoria are between 2 and 3 mm long.
Cassytha pubescens grows as a photosynthetic stem that twins around itself and around the branches of its host. Stems are between 0.5 and 1.5 mm thick and can be highly variable in appearance. In darker more humid conditions the stems have been noted to be dark green in colour, glabrescent and with very few pale grey hairs however stems can be glabrescent to pubescent, smooth to wrinkly and can vary in colour on a single plant.
High variation exists in flowers, fruits, stems and trichomes within individuals, across individuals in a population and across populations of Cassytha pubescens. It has been speculated that the variation is likely a result of a combination of reproductive isolation across populations and in some cases phenotypic modification to different environments. Flowers may occur on spikes, racemes or panicles and are either sessile or almost sessile.
Peduncles can be 3-20mm long with or without hairs. Peduncles up to 10 cm have been noted in specimens from NE NSW and QLD. Flowers have pubescent petals and 9 stamens, with the outer stamens dorsiventrally flattened. When fleshy, fruit can be green, greeny-red, grey to greeny-red in colour and may be anywhere between smooth to pubescent. Fruit is globose to obovoid in shape and ranges in size from 6-10mm × 5.5-9mm . Fruit may be covered in dull green to dull-reddy brown bands . Fruit is grey to black when dry/ drying.
Flowering occurs in summer through the months of December to April with fruit developing from March to April.
Distribution and Habitat
Cassytha pubescence is widespread along the east coast of Australia not extending into arid regions. The species extends from the south-east of Queensland into the eastern half of NSW and into south-eastern South Australia. The species is also found across eastern and western regions of Victoria and Tasmania. Cassytha pubescence is most commonly found in dry forests in woodlands.
Metrosideros polymorpha, the ʻōhiʻa lehua, is a species of flowering evergreen tree in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae, that is endemic to the six largest islands of Hawaiʻi. It is a highly variable tree, being 20–25 m (66–82 ft) tall in favorable situations, and a much smaller prostrate shrub when growing in boggy soils or directly on basalt. It produces a brilliant display of flowers, made up of a mass of stamens, which can range from fiery red to yellow. Many native Hawaiian traditions refer to the tree and the forests it forms as sacred to Pele, the volcano goddess, and to Laka, the goddess of hula. ʻŌhiʻa trees grow easily on lava, and are usually the very first plants to grow on new lava flows.
Metrosideros polymorpha is the most common native tree in the Hawaiian Islands, tolerating a wide range of soil conditions, temperature, and rainfall. It grows from sea level right up to the tree line at elevations of 2,500 m (8,200 ft) and is commonly found in moist and dry forests, high shrublands, and is a colonizer of recent lava flows. It is relatively slow growing. Dominant in cloud forests above 400 m (1,300 ft), the tree is also common in seasonally wet forests, where it may be dominant or form mixtures with the native Acacia koa.
Metrosideros polymorpha may occur as a tall tree or a prostrate shrub, and everything in between. Preferred soils are acidic to neutral (pH 3.6-7.4) and either a Histosol, Mollisol, Podsol, Oxisol, Ultisol, or Alfisol. Rainfall of 1,000–3,000 mm (39–118 in) per year is favored, but ʻōhiʻa can grow in dry forests that receive as little as 400 mm (16 in) or bogs that get more than 10,000 mm (390 in) of rain.[1] On moist, deep soils, ʻōhiʻa grows to 20–25 m (66–82 ft) high. Specimens reaching 30 m (98 ft) high are on record.
The trunk varies in form. In some trees, it is straight and smooth; in others, it is twisted and prominently fluted. Trees growing in forests often have stilt roots, having germinated on logs or the stems of fallen hāpuʻu (Cibotium tree ferns), which have long decayed away when the tree has reached maturity. Some trees have fibrous aerial roots to gather moisture. At high elevations, and in areas with poor soils or little rainfall, shrub forms are the norm. Flowers are usually bright to medium red but orange-red, salmon, pink, yellow, or orange forms are also found. The flowers appear in clusters on the terminal ends of the branches. Masses of stamens extend from the flower and give the blossoms their characteristic pom-pom shape.
Alcantarea imperialis is the most regal and is considered the signature species of this genus. It is one of the giants of the bromeliad family. This Bromeliad grows to a span of more than 1.5 metres, although it can take up to ten years to get to this size. The thick flower spike reaches up to 3.5 metres in height, producing hundreds of slightly fragrant creamy white flowers. The green, slightly ribbed leaves are quite leathery and tough with a distinctive waxy bloom over the surface, giving a bluish colouration from a distance.
This species can withstand relatively cool nights, as it is native to mountains of Teresópolis near Rio de Janeiro at an elevation of about 1,500 metres. There it creates the most spectacular landscape, with near vertical cliffs and rocky outcrops of granite studded with these majestic plants. Each plant establishes its’ own micro habitat, with the gradual build up of humus, mosses and lichens around the root system providing a store of water and nutrients in addition to the reserves held in the copious leaf bases and vases. On these mountains, they are often found in the same areas as 3 other Alcantarea species, A. nahoumii, A. glaziouana and A. regina. However, each of these species occupies a different part of the ecosystem, with a single mountain occupied on each side, or at different elevations, with a separate species. DNA work is being carried out on these species at present, to more accurately determine how closely related they are to each other.
Alcantarea imperialis in the wild are becoming increasingly endangered. Initially this was from the destruction of natural areas by encroaching civilisation, resulting in large losses of habitat to fire and clearance. Then huge numbers of plants were destroyed from the misconception that having these plants near civilisation was encouraging diseases such as malaria and dengue fever. Finally as landscapers and gardeners realise that these are dramatic and desirable plants for the garden, tens of thousands of plants are stripped from the wild and sent to the cities, or exported. Worldwide, there has been an explosion of interest in these plants, first popularised by the famous Brazilian landscape architect, Robert Burle-Marx.
This wholesale destruction and stripping of Alcantarea from the wild has an immense impact on the whole ecosystem, as these plants are home to innumerable quantities of small animals, insects, reptiles and amphibians. In addition, the copious quantities of nectar and pollen, produced over the 5-month flowering period, form important food sources for bees, birds, moths and various insects. In my own garden, far removed from their native environments, I have seen queues of up to 4 European honeybees at a time jostling for position in an individual Brazilian Alcantarea flower.
Fortunately, some nurseries in Brazil are showing the foresight to produce large quantities of Alcantarea imperialis from seed and pups with the result that many hundreds of thousands of these plants are now being produced and exported around the world. These nurseries are a spectacular sight in their own right, with row upon row of these giant plants covering the valleys. Production from seed is becoming very common, as each flower stem can produce between 400-600 flowers, which if all successfully pollinated would produce 80,000 to 200,000 seeds!
Pinguicula gigantea is a tropical species of carnivorous plant in the family Lentibulariaceae. Its native range is within Mexico. P. gigantea's flower is usually a purple colour with the occasional light blue also seen. P. gigantea was once classified as Pinguicula ayautla.
This Pinguicula was discovered by Alfred Lau and described by the botanist Hans Luhrs.
P. gigantea has a few different forms, such as the 'white flower' form or the 'blue flower'.
Because of the way the flowers are constructed, it is tricky to pollinate them by hand. The easiest way to pollinate the flowers is with a tooth pick. You could play hummingbird tongue by poking the toothpick in and out of the flower trying to pick up the pollen from the anthers on the way out and deposit it on the stigma on the way in.
However a more reliable way is to rip the flowers to get at the anthers and stigmas directly. To rip the flowers hold the top petals with one hand and the lower petals with the other and carefully tear off the lower petals.
Do not touch the stem as you are likely to damage it. You can use a toothpick to transfer pollen the from the anthers to the stigma or use a forceps to remove the stamens and paint the stigma with the anthers. It may take some practice.
Habitat
P. gigantea grows in the Mexican state of Oaxaca at an altitude of 688 meters or 2260 feet.
Leaves
P. gigantea, unlike most Pinguicula species, has sticky upper and undersides of the leaves. The leaves have trichomes on them, which secrete a mucilage that traps prey. P. gigantea's leaves are among the largest in its genus. The species epithet, gigantea, describes this characteristic.
Flowers
The flowers of P. gigantea are usually zygomorphic. The varieties of P. gigantea differ solely on their flowers, such as the 'blue flower' P. gigantea or the 'white flower' forms. Other forms have also been described.
Dormancy and winter
P. gigantea is a tropical Mexican species of Pinguicula. Its dormancy is not regulated by temperature or light. Like most tropical species, its dormancy is triggered by lack of moisture. Very little precipitation falls during the winter in Mexico where this Pinguicula species lives. In order to survive in these conditions it forms non-carnivorous leaves and can handle dry conditions. When the plant emerges from its dormant period in the Spring, it produces new carnivorous leaves and eventually flowers.
Ceropegia woodii is a flowering plant in the genus Ceropegia (Apocynaceae), native to South Africa, Swaziland, and Zimbabwe. It is sometimes treated as a subspecies of the related Ceropegia linearis, as C. linearis subsp. woodii. Common names include chain of hearts, collar of hearts, string of hearts, rosary vine, hearts-on-a-string and sweetheart vine.
The species was discovered in 1881 by John Medley Wood, curator of the Durban Botanic Gardens, hanging from rocks on Groenberg in Natal at an altitude of 1800 feet. Thirteen years later, in 1894, he sent a living plant to Kew. Its trailing habit, neat appearance and tolerance of neglect, made it an ideal plant for hanging baskets. The plant that had been sent to Kew subsequently flowered, providing the material for Plate 7704 of Curtis's Botanical Magazine published in 1900. The prolific botanical artist Matilda Smith prepared the plate, while the Kew taxonomist N. E. Brown produced a detailed description, naming the plant after its discoverer.
It is an evergreen succulent trailing vine that grows to 10 centimetres (3.9 in) in height and spreads to reach up to 2–4 metres (6 ft 7 in–13 ft 1 in) in length. Its leaves are shaped like hearts, about 1-2 cm wide and long. When exposed to sufficient light they have a deep green colour; under insufficient lighting the leaves are pale green. With age it develops a woody caudex at its base. The roots, and occasionally the stems, will often develop tubers. On the stems these form at nodes and are likely the reason for the common name of rosary vine.
The flower is in general form similar to those of other Ceropegia species. The corolla grows to 3 cm in length and is a mixed colouring of off-white and pale magenta. The five petals are a deeper purple.
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Water storing tubers
Oxalis triangularis, commonly called false shamrock, is a species of edible perennial plant in the Oxalidaceae family. It is endemic to Brazil. This woodsorrel is typically grown as a houseplant but can be grown outside in USDA climate zones 8a–11, preferably in light shade.
Mature False Shamrock plants are cut back to the soil every 3–5 years in early summer or during the dormancy period. Young plants are cut back to the soil every year in early summer or during the dormancy period, until they reach maturity.
The leaves of O. triangularis move in response to light levels, opening in high ambient light (in the day) and closing at low light levels (at night). This movement is not due to growth and is instead powered by changes in turgor pressure in cells at the base of the leaf. It is an example of photonasty.
