Acephala group | |
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![]() Three young plants of non-heading collard greens growing in a small office wastebasket with a water reservoir at the bottom | |
Species | Brassica oleracea |
Cultivar group | Acephala Group |
Origin | unknown |
Cultivar group members | Many; see text. |
The Acephala group refers to any type of Brassica which grows without the central 'head' typical of many varieties of cabbage. These are included within the species Brassica oleracea , such as kale (Brassica oleracea var. acephala). [1] The name literally means "without a head" in contrast to those varieties known as capitata or "with a head". This group includes a number of species, both wild and cultivated, many of which are grown for their edible leaves and flowers.
![]() | It has been suggested that portions of this section be split out into another articletitled Brassica oleracea#Cultivars . (Discuss) (March 2023) |
Different sources break down the Brassica genus into different grouping as shown below:
Mabberley (q.v.) has these groups: Napobrassica Group / Pabularia Group / Acephala Group / Alboglabra Group / Botrytis Group / Capitata Group / Gemmifera Group / Gongylodes Group / Italica Group / Tronchuda Group / Chinensis Group / Japonica Group / Pekinensis Group / Perviridis Group / Rapifera Group
Royal Botanic Gardens Kew [2] has eight cultivar groups: Acephala Group (kale, borecole, collards) / Alboglabra Group (Chinese kale, Chinese broccoli, gai lan, kai lan) / Botrytis Group (broccoli, cauliflower, broccoflower, calabrese) / Capitata Group (cabbage, Savoy cabbage, red cabbage) / Gemmifera Group (sprouts, Brussels sprouts) / Gongylodes Group (kohlrabi, knol-kohl) / Italica Group (purple sprouting, sprouting broccoli) / Tronchuda Group (Portuguese cabbage, seakale cabbage)
The Acephala group of cultivars or variety for the species Brassica oleracea includes: [3]
Acephala means "no head" [12] as the plants have leaves with no central head; the opposite arrangement of white cabbage, or Savoy cabbage. Each cultivar has a different genome owing to mutation, [13] evolution, ecological niche, [14] and intentional plant-breeding by humans. Mabberley (1997, p. 120) has the Acephala group in three sub-groups: kale, borecole, and collards. [15]