Caper

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Capparis spinosa
Illustration Capparis spinosa0.jpg
Illustration by Otto Wilhelm Thomé
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Brassicales
Family: Capparaceae
Genus: Capparis
Species:
C. spinosa
Binomial name
Capparis spinosa
Linnaeus, 1753
Synonyms [2]
Synonymy
Capparis spinosa fruits in Behbahan mywh lgchy dr bhbhn.jpg
Capparis spinosa fruits in Behbahan

Capparis spinosa, the caper bush, also called Flinders rose, [3] is a perennial plant that bears rounded, fleshy leaves and large white to pinkish-white flowers. [4] [5] [6]

Contents

The taxonomic status of the species is controversial and unsettled. Species within the genus Capparis are highly variable, and interspecific hybrids have been common throughout the evolutionary history of the genus. As a result, some authors have considered C. spinosa to be composed of multiple distinct species, [7] others that the taxon is a single species with multiple varieties or subspecies, [8] [9] or that the taxon C. spinosa is a hybrid between C. orientalis and C. sicula. [10]

Capparis spinosa is native to almost all the circum-Mediterranean countries, [11] and is included in the flora of most of them, but whether it is indigenous to this region is uncertain. The family Capparaceae could have originated in the tropics and later spread to the Mediterranean basin. [12]

The plant is best known for the edible flower buds (capers), used as a seasoning or garnish, and the fruit (caper berries), both of which are usually consumed salted or pickled. Other species of Capparis are also picked along with C. spinosa for their buds or fruits. Other parts of Capparis plants are used in the manufacture of medicines and cosmetics.

Description

Leaves and flower buds kapari Capparis spinosa Kapernstrauch.JPG
Leaves and flower buds
Caper flower in Behbahan Caper Flower in Behbahan, Iran.jpg
Caper flower in Behbahan

The shrubby plant is many-branched, with alternate leaves, thick and shiny, round to ovate. The flowers are complete, sweetly fragrant, and showy, with four sepals and four white to pinkish-white petals, many long violet-coloured stamens, and a single stigma usually rising well above the stamens. [13]

Accepted infraspecifics

Eleven subspecies and variants are accepted, according to Plants of the World Online: [14]

Capparis nummularia was formerly considered a subspecies of Capparis spinosa. [15]

Distribution and habitat

Capparis spinosa ranges around the Mediterranean Basin, Arabian Peninsula, and portions of Western and Central Asia.

In southern Europe, it is found in southern Portugal, southern and eastern Spain (including the Balearic Islands), Mediterranean France including Corsica, Italy including Sicily and Sardinia, Croatia's Dalmatian islands, Albania, Greece and the Greek Islands, western and southern Turkey, on Cyprus, and on the Crimean Peninsula in Ukraine. In Spain, it ranges from sea level up to 1,300 metres (4,300 ft) in elevation. [1]

In northern Africa, it is found throughout the north and the Atlas Mountains of Morocco, where it occurs from sea level up to 2,000 m (6,600 ft) in elevation. It is also found in northern Algeria (Kabylie, coastal Algeria, Bouzaréa, and Oran) and the Hoggar Mountains of the Algerian Sahara, in Tunisia north of the Sahara, and Cyrenaica in Libya. [1]

In western Asia, it is found along the eastern Mediterranean in Lebanon, Israel, Syria, and western Jordan, and in the southern Sinai Peninsula of Egypt. It is also found south of the Caucasus in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and northeastern Turkey. On the Arabian Peninsula it occurs in Oman, Yemen including Socotra, and Asir province of Saudi Arabia. In central Asia, it inhabits the mountains of central Afghanistan, the lower Karakoram range in northern Pakistan and Ladakh, and Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, and eastern Uzbekistan. [1]

Environmental requirements

Thorny caper flower in Israel Capparis spinosa Negev.JPG
Thorny caper flower in Israel
Open ripe caper fruit Capparis cartilaginea open fruit.jpg
Open ripe caper fruit

The caper bush requires a semiarid or arid climate. The caper bush has developed a series of mechanisms that reduce the impact of high radiation levels, high daily temperature, and insufficient soil water during its growing period. [16] [17]

In response to sudden increases in humidity, the bush forms wart-like pockmarks across the leaf surface. It quickly adjusts to the new conditions and produces unaffected leaves.[ citation needed ]

Agriculture

Flowering caper plant, soon to yield caper berries Flowering caper plant.jpg
Flowering caper plant, soon to yield caper berries

Capers can be grown easily from fresh seeds gathered from ripe fruit and planted into a well-drained seed-raising mix. Seedlings appear in two to four weeks. Old, stored seeds enter a state of dormancy and require cold stratification to germinate. The viable embryos germinate within three to four days after partial removal of the lignified seed coats. [18] The seed coats and the mucilage surrounding the seeds may be ecological adaptations to avoid water loss and conserve seed viability during the dry season.[ citation needed ]

Orchard establishment

Mean annual temperatures in areas under cultivation are over 14 °C (57 °F). A rainy spring and a hot, dry summer are considered advantageous. [19] This drought-tolerant perennial plant is used for landscaping and reducing erosion along highways, steep rocky slopes, dunes or fragile semiarid ecosystems.[ citation needed ]

Harvest

Caper buds are usually picked in the morning. [20] Because the youngest, smallest buds fetch the highest prices, daily picking is typical. [20]

Capers may be harvested from wild plants, in which case it is necessary to know that the plant is not one of the few poisonous Capparis species that look similar. [20] The plant normally has curved thorns that may scratch the people who harvest the buds, although a few spineless varieties have been developed. [20]

Uses

Capers, prepared, canned
Nutritional value per 100 g (3.5 oz)
Energy 96 kJ (23 kcal)
5 g
Sugars 0.4 g
Dietary fiber 3 g
Fat
0.9 g
2 g
Vitamins and minerals
Vitamins Quantity
%DV†
Thiamine (B1)
2%
0.018 mg
Riboflavin (B2)
11%
0.139 mg
Niacin (B3)
4%
0.652 mg
Pantothenic acid (B5)
1%
0.027 mg
Vitamin B6
1%
0.023 mg
Folate (B9)
6%
23 μg
Vitamin C
4%
4 mg
Vitamin E
6%
0.88 mg
Vitamin K
21%
24.6 μg
Minerals Quantity
%DV†
Calcium
3%
40 mg
Iron
9%
1.7 mg
Sodium
129%
2960 mg
Other constituentsQuantity
Water83.8 g
Selenium1.2 μg
Link to USDA Nutrient Database Entry
†Percentages estimated using US recommendations for adults, [21] except for potassium, which is estimated based on expert recommendation from the National Academies. [22]

Nutrition

Canned, pickled capers are 84% water, 5% carbohydrates, 2% protein, and 1% fat. Preserved capers are particularly high in sodium due to the amount of salt added to the brine. In a typical serving of 28 grams (one ounce), capers supply 6 kcal and 35% of the Daily Value (DV) for sodium, with no other nutrients in significant content. In a 100-gram amount, the sodium content is 2960 mg or 197% DV, with vitamin K (23% DV), iron (13% DV), and riboflavin (12% DV) also having appreciable levels.

Culinary

Pickled capers in a jar Capers jar.jpg
Pickled capers in a jar

The salted and pickled caper bud (simply called a "caper") is used as an ingredient, seasoning, or garnish. Capers are a common ingredient in Mediterranean cuisine, especially Cypriot, Italian, Aeolian Greek, and Maltese food. The immature fruit of the caper shrub are prepared similarly and marketed as "caper berries". Fully mature fruit are not preferred, as they contain many hard seeds.[ citation needed ]

The buds, when ready to pick, are a dark olive green and range in size from under 7 mm (1⁄4 in) to more than 14 mm (1⁄2 in). They are picked, then pickled in salt or a salt and vinegar solution, and drained. Intense flavour, sometimes described as being similar to black pepper or mustard, is developed as glucocapparin, a glycoside organosulfur molecule, is released from each caper bud. [20] This enzymatic reaction leads to the formation of rutin, often seen as crystallized white spots on the surfaces of individual caper buds.[ citation needed ]

Capers are a distinctive ingredient in Italian cuisine, especially in Sicilian, Aeolian and southern Italian cooking. They are commonly used in salads, pasta salads, meat dishes, and pasta sauces. Examples of uses in Italian cuisine are piccata dishes, vitello tonnato and spaghetti alla puttanesca .[ citation needed ]

Capers are sometimes an ingredient in tartar sauce. They are often served with cold smoked salmon or cured salmon dishes, especially lox and cream cheese. Capers and caper berries are sometimes substituted for olives to garnish a martini.[ citation needed ]

Capers are categorized and sold by their size, defined as follows, with the smallest sizes being the most desirable: non-pareil (up to 7 mm), surfines (7–8 mm), capucines (8–9 mm), capotes (9–11 mm), fines (11–13 mm), and grusas (14+ mm). If the caper bud is not picked, it flowers and produces a caper berry. The fruit can be pickled and then served as a Greek mezze .[ citation needed ]

Caper leaves, which are hard to find outside of Greece or Cyprus, are used particularly in salads and fish dishes. They are pickled or boiled and preserved in jars with brine—like caper buds.[ citation needed ]

Dried caper leaves are also used as a substitute for rennet in manufacturing high-quality cheese. [23]

Polyphenols

Canned capers contain polyphenols, including the flavonoids quercetin (173 mg per 100 g) and kaempferol (131 mg per 100 g), [24] as well as anthocyanins. [25]

Other uses

Capers are sometimes used in cosmetics. [20]

History

Archaeobotanical evidence of capers has been found in the Mediterranean region and Mesopotamia as early as the upper Paleolithic period. [10]

The caper was used in ancient Greece as a carminative. It is represented in archaeological levels in the form of carbonised seeds and rarely as flower buds and fruits from archaic and classical antiquity contexts. Athenaeus in Deipnosophistae pays a lot of attention to the caper, as do Pliny (NH XIX, XLVIII.163) and Theophrastus. [26]

Etymologically, the caper and its relatives in several European languages can be traced back to Classical Latin capparis, "caper", in turn, borrowed from the Greek κάππαρις, kápparis, whose origin (as with that of the plant) is unknown but is probably Asian.[ citation needed ] Another theory links kápparis to the name of the island of Cyprus (Κύπρος, Kýpros), where capers grow abundantly. [27]

A ripe caper fruit (caper berry) Capparis fruit.JPG
A ripe caper fruit (caper berry)

In Biblical times, the caper berry was supposed to have aphrodisiac properties; [28] the Hebrew word aviyyonah (אֲבִיּוֹנָה) for caperberry is closely linked to the Hebrew root אבה (avah), meaning "desire". [29]

The berries (abiyyonot) were eaten, as appears from their liability to tithes and the restrictions of the 'Orlah. They are carefully distinguished in the Mishnah and the Talmud from the caper leaves, alin, shoots, temarot, [30] and the caper buds, capperisin (note the similarity "caper"isin to "caper"); [31] all of which were eaten as seen from the blessing requirement, and declared to be the fruit of the ẓelaf or caper plant. [30] The "capperisin" mentioned in the Talmud are actually referring to a shell that protected the "abiyyonot" as it grew. [32]

Talmud Bavli discusses the eating of caper sepals versus caper berries, both in Israel and in Syria. [30]

Capers are mentioned as a spice in the Roman cookbook Apicius . [20]

See also

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<i>Viburnum trilobum</i> Species of fruit and plant

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<i>Boscia albitrunca</i> Species of tree

Boscia albitrunca, commonly known as the shepherd tree or shepherd's tree, is a protected species of South African tree in the caper family. It is known for having the deepest known root structure of any plant at: -68 metres (223 ft).

<i>Capparis</i> Genus of flowering plants

Capparis is a genus of flowering plants in the family Capparaceae. It includes 142 species of shrubs or lianas which are collectively known as caper shrubs or caperbushes. Capparis species occur over a wide range of habitat in the subtropical and tropical regions of Africa, Eurasia, Australasia, and the Pacific.

<i>Sambucus racemosa</i> Species of plant

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<i>Capparis arborea</i> Species of tree

Capparis arborea is a bush or small tree occurring in eastern Australia. Its habitat is rainforest, usually riverine, littoral or the drier rainforests. It is distributed from the Hunter River, New South Wales to Cape Melville in tropical Queensland. Common names include native pomegranate, wild lime, wild lemon and brush caper berry. Capparis arborea is a host plant for the caper white , which migrate across the eastern seaboard in large numbers in the summer. It also feeds the chalky white

<i>Capparis tomentosa</i> Species of fruit and plant

Capparis tomentosa, the woolly caper bush or African caper, is a plant in the family Capparaceae and is native to Africa.

<i>Capparis fascicularis</i> Species of flowering plant

Capparis fascicularis, the zigzag caper-bush, is a plant in the Capparaceae family and is native to Africa.

<i>Maerua afra</i> Species of tree

Maerua afra (DC.) Pax is a small Southern African tree belonging to Capparaceae, the caper family, occurring eastwards along the coast from Knysna, then further inland and northwards through KwaZulu-Natal and Eswatini to the Transvaal, southern Mozambique and southern Zimbabwe. The genus Maerua comprises about 60 species found in Africa and Asia.

<i>Corema album</i> Species of flowering plant

Corema album, the Portuguese crowberry ; Spanish: camarina, is a species of flowering plant in the family Ericaceae endemic to the Iberian Peninsula, Aquitaine, and the Azores (sub-species), where it may also be considered a different species. Its white berries are known to have been consumed by people in the Iberian Peninsula at least since the Middle-Ages. The only other species of the same genus is Corema conradii, found in North America.

<i>Capparis loranthifolia</i> Species of plant

Capparis loranthifolia, also known as the narrowleaf bumble or narrow-leaved bumble tree, is a shrub or small tree in the caper family. It is endemic to the arid and semi-arid interior of northern and eastern Australia from Western Australia to New South Wales.

<i>Capparis zoharyi</i> Species of a plant.

Capparis zoharyi is a perennial, deciduous species of caper.

<i>Capparis lucida</i> Species of plant

Capparis lucida, commonly referred to as the coast caper, is a versatile plant that often grows as a small tree or a shrub, usually reaching heights of 3 to 4 meters. While it may sometimes climb, it typically produces flowers and fruits as a shrub. The leaves are glossy and range from 3 to 10 cm long and 2 to 5 cm wide, with a noticeable central vein and smaller veins forming loops near the edges. Both the petioles and twigs are covered in fine, soft hairs.

<i>Capparis spinosa <span style="font-style:normal;">subsp.</span> cordifolia</i> Subspecies of caper plant

Capparis spinosasubsp. cordifolia, is a plant endemic to central Malesia and western and southern Pacific Ocean islands. It is a shrub growing along coastal limestone cliffs.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Rankou, H., M'Sou, S., Diarra, A. & Ait Babahmad, R.A. 2020. Capparis spinosa. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2020: e.T137745831A139593491. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-1.RLTS.T137745831A139593491.en. Downloaded on 24 September 2021.
  2. ↑ The Plant List, Capparis spinosa L
  3. ↑ "Capparis spinosa". Germplasm Resources Information Network . Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture . Retrieved 11 December 2017.
  4. ↑ Altervista Flora Italiana, Cappero, Kapernstrauch, Capparis spinosa L. includes photos and European distribution map
  5. ↑ Flora of China, 山柑 shan gan, Capparis spinosa Linnaeus, Sp. Pl. 1: 503. 1753.
  6. ↑ "Capparis spinosa L." Atlas of Living Australia.
  7. ↑ Zohary, M. (1960). "The species of Capparis in the Mediterranean and the Near Eastern Countries." Bulletin of the Research Council of Israel, Section D, Botany 8(2): 49-64
  8. ↑ Jacobs, M. (1965). "The genus Capparis (Capparaceae) from the Indus to the Pacific". Blumea. 12: 385–541.
  9. ↑ Heywood V.H. (1993). "Flowering plants of the world." Oxford University Press, New York
  10. 1 2 D. Rivera, C. Inocencio, C. Obón, E. Carreño, A. Reales, F. Alcaraz. (2002). "Archaeobotany of capers (Capparis) (Capparaceae)." Vegetation History and Archaeobotany.11(4): 295–313
  11. ↑ Fici, S. (2001). "Intraspecific variation and evolutionary trends in Capparis spinosa L. (Capparaceae)". Plant Systematics and Evolution. 228 (3–4): 123–141. Bibcode:2001PSyEv.228..123F. doi:10.1007/s006060170024. S2CID   8713605.
  12. ↑ Pugnaire de Iraola, F.I. (1989). "Nota sobre las Capparaceae ibéricas". Blancoana. 7: 121–122.
  13. ↑ Watson, L.; M.J. Dallwitz (1992). "The Families of Flowering Plants". Archived from the original on 1 November 2006. Retrieved 21 November 2006.
  14. ↑ "Capparis spinosa L. | Plants of the World Online | Kew Science". Plants of the World Online. Retrieved 8 December 2024.
  15. ↑ "Capparis spinosa subsp. nummularia (DC.) Fici | Plants of the World Online | Kew Science". Plants of the World Online. Retrieved 8 December 2024.
  16. ↑ Rhizopoulou, S. (1990). "Physiological responses of Capparis spinosa L. to drought." Journal of Plant Physiology136: 341–348.
  17. ↑ Levizou, E; P. Drilias; A. Kyparissis (2004). "Exceptional photosynthetic performance of Capparis spinosa L. under adverse conditions of Mediterranean summer." Photosynthetica.42: 229–235
  18. ↑ Sozzi, G.O.; A. Chiesa (1995). "Improvement of caper (Capparis spinosa L.) seed germination by breaking seed coat-induced dormancy". Scientia Horticulturae. 62 (4): 255–261. Bibcode:1995ScHor..62..255S. doi:10.1016/0304-4238(95)00779-S.
  19. ↑ Barbera, B. (1991). Le câprier (Capparis spp.). EUR 13617, Série Agriculture, Programme de recherche Agrimed. Commission des Communautés européennes, Luxembourg, 63 pp.
  20. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Small, Ernest (23 August 2011). Top 100 Exotic Food Plants. Boca Raton, Florida: CRC Press. pp. 121–123. ISBN   978-1439856888.
  21. ↑ United States Food and Drug Administration (2024). "Daily Value on the Nutrition and Supplement Facts Labels". FDA. Archived from the original on 27 March 2024. Retrieved 28 March 2024.
  22. ↑ National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine; Health and Medicine Division; Food and Nutrition Board; Committee to Review the Dietary Reference Intakes for Sodium and Potassium (2019). "Chapter 4: Potassium: Dietary Reference Intakes for Adequacy". In Oria, Maria; Harrison, Meghan; Stallings, Virginia A. (eds.). Dietary Reference Intakes for Sodium and Potassium. The National Academies Collection: Reports funded by National Institutes of Health. Washington, DC: National Academies Press (US). pp. 120–121. doi:10.17226/25353. ISBN   978-0-309-48834-1. PMID   30844154 . Retrieved 5 December 2024.
  23. ↑ Mike, Tad, "Capers: The Flower Inside", Epikouria Magazine, Fall/Winter 2006
  24. ↑ "USDA Database for the Flavonoid Content of Selected Foods, Release 3, page 16" (PDF). US Department of Agriculture. 2011. Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 July 2012. Retrieved 12 July 2016.
  25. ↑ Mansour, R. B.; Jilani, I. B.; Bouaziz, M; Gargouri, B; Elloumi, N; Attia, H; Ghrabi-Gammar, Z; Lassoued, S (2016). "Phenolic contents and antioxidant activity of ethanolic extract of Capparis spinosa". Cytotechnology. 68 (1): 135–42. doi:10.1007/s10616-014-9764-6. PMC   4698273 . PMID   25377263.
  26. ↑ Fragiska, M. (2005). Wild and Cultivated Vegetables, Herbs and Spices in Greek Antiquity. Environmental Archaeology10 (1): 73–82
  27. ↑ Gernot Katzer. "Spice Pages: Capers (Capparis spinosa)". gernot-katzers-spice-pages.com.
  28. ↑ Kohler, Kaufmann; Hyvernat, Henry (1906). "Caper-berry". The Jewish Encyclopedia .
  29. ↑ See, e.g. Gesenius's lexicon, via Blue Letter Bible
  30. 1 2 3 Talmud Bavli, Brachot 36a-36b
  31. ↑ Kaf HaChaim 208
  32. ↑ Rashi Brachot 36a
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