Cochlearia anglica
Flowers of English spoon herb
The English scurvy grass ( Cochlearia anglica ) belongs to the family of cruciferous plants ( Brassicaceae). As the Danish scurvy grass, it is one of the first plants to bloom in the harsh climate of the Watt banks and salt marshes in May.
- 5.1 Notes and references
- 5.2 External links
Description
Vegetative characteristics
The annual plant growth reaches heights of 10 to 30 cm. The ascending to erect stems is wrinkled and bald. It has fleshy, glossy leaves. The basal leaves of the plant are arranged in rosettes, long-stalked, ovate - rhombic and often perforated. The stem leaves are narrow - ovate, coarsely serrated mostly, but occasionally nearly entire, with heart - or arrow-shaped base and amplexicaul.
Inflorescence, flowers and fruit
The English spoon herb blooms from May to July. The flowers are borne in a reichblütigen, racemose inflorescence. The white petals have a length of 5.5 to 6.5 mm. The fruit is an ovoid to spherical silicles 8-16 mm in length.
Other properties
As ingredients of English spoon herb known are glucosinolates, bitter and highly vitamin C.
The chromosome number is n = 37/2-25, 24
Dissemination
The English scurvy grass is found in the salt marshes of the North and Baltic Sea coast, but also inland northern Europe. In the Netherlands, the type takes one hand off the Zuiderzee area due to dam construction, on the other hand, an increase in the Fund points was registered in the Wadden Sea. In Britain and France, she goes back partly strong, while in Germany a few extinct occurrence are given.
This species needs NaCl-containing, muddy or muddy - sandy bottom.
Ecology
The plants thrive in salt marsh with a salt content of 1.6-2.3 %. The salt is collected in the leaves and excreted with the dropping of the dried leaves again. It occurs in small groups, but also as a single unit. The fertilization of the species whose flowers contain both male and female organs, is via self - or insect pollination.
The style is light- loving and indicates extreme maritime climate. Your location is indicative of nitrogen-rich, very moist, salty and often flooded soil. The spread of the type carried by animals (velcro spread ), about self- propagation and wind propagation.
Use
The plant was formerly used as a remedy for scurvy, for " blood purification " or as a wound dressing for poorly healing ulcers. Spoon herb contains a lot of vitamin C and was therefore on sailing ships, where fresh vegetables were completely missing, corned used as protection against vitamin deficiency disease scurvy. The seeds were pressed collected from August to September to a healing of fresh juice ( spoonwort Spirit).
Sources and further information
The article is mainly based on the following documents:
- Oskar Sebald: Guide to the Natural wild plants in Central Europe, ADAC Verlag, Munich 1989, ISBN 3-87003-352-5