Galinsoga parviflora

Hoary galinsoga ( Galinsoga parviflora )

The Small- galinsoga or ( Hoary ) French herb ( Galinsoga parviflora ) is a common weed from the sunflower family ( Asteraceae).

Features

The Small- French herb is an annual herbaceous plant that reaches the plant height of about 20 centimeters. The stems of the plant is hairy bald or very sparse fitting. The opposite leaves are undivided and constant more or less finely denticulate on the edge. The flower stems are hairy little denser, but the hairs are the stems on tight. In any case, the plant is not shaggy hairy like the Hairy galinsoga.

The flower heads have a diameter of about 5 mm. The generally four to five white ray florets are much shorter than half the diameter of the yellow capitulum. They are usually a little longer than wide and have the front two or three small teeth.

Ecology

The Small- galinsoga is an annual, summer annual plant and a light - and heat to germinate. In favorable years, but it can form two or more generations. As a former tropical plant, it is highly sensitive to frost and freezes to death already with the first frosts. It is rooted 25 -80cm deep.

The flowers are "basket flower " whose heads mature at intervals one after another. There will be only self-pollination. Bloom time is from June to October.

The fruits are split fruit consisting of 2 small, one-seeded nuts, and are firmly attached to the barbed chalice; therefore takes place Velcro spread. In autumn and columnar sections or whole fruiting plants can be spread by animals or as a floor roller by the wind. Fruit ripening from July to September. The seeds are 1-3 ( -8) years germinable.

Occurrence

The Small- galinsoga is a typical " weed ". It grows like to loamy, nitrogen-rich areas such as in gardens, to fields with bare soil or on roadsides. It is widespread and not rare, but not quite as frequently as the Hairy galinsoga.

The French herb is a neophyte. The plant originally comes from South America. It was planted in the late 18th century botanical gardens, but soon also taken into agricultural culture because of their tasty leaves. Because they spread very strong and this time with the campaigns of Napoleon coincided, the French came to wrongly discredit to have introduced it. Today, the French herb throughout Europe and much of Asia has spread. The whole herb is well suited for the preparation of wild herb salad.

Use

The French herb can be used as cattle feed plant. It provides a valuable compost and is therefore suitable for natural fertilization. Young stems and leaves give cooked a delicious vegetable dish, raw cooked a spicy salad. In its actual native Colombia, it is the characteristic spice ( Guasca ) of chicken soup ajiaco de Bogotá.