Helosciadium nodiflorum

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Fool's-watercress
Helosciadium nodiflorum kz17.jpg
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Apiales
Family: Apiaceae
Genus: Helosciadium
Species:
H. nodiflorum
Binomial name
Helosciadium nodiflorum

Helosciadium nodiflorum [2] (synonym: Apium nodiflorum), fool's watercress, [1] is a flowering plant found in ditches or streams, as well as fresh and brackish-water wetlands native to western Europe. It is not poisonous to humans but it could be easily confused with the allegedly poisonous lesser water parsnip.

Contents

Description

Helosciadium nodiflorum is a low-growing or prostrate hairless perennial up to 1 m tall, with a thick, hollow, faintly ridged stem which, when lying down (procumbent) produces roots at the nodes. It has glossy pinnate leaves, each of which has 4-6 opposite pairs of toothed, oval to lanceolate leaflets that are slightly paler green on the undersides. There are ridges at the nodes of the leaflets which are often paler than the rhachis and look like rings. (Note, this is different from lesser water-parsnip, which has a ring on the petiole.) The petioles are hollow with a distinctive single groove on upper surface, and may be streaked with red/purple lines; they are laterally inflated towards the base and clasp the stem. [3] The crushed leaves smell of carrot.

Close up of umbel flowers. Helosciadium nodiflorum2.jpg
Close up of umbel flowers.

Taxonomy

In 2010 a taxonomic revision demonstrated that the genus Apium was polyphyletic and needed to be split into three genera. Five of the 7 European species of Apium were therefore moved to the genus Helosciadium, as had first been proposed by Wilhelm Koch in 1824. Apium nodiflorum was among them, and is therefore now correctly called Helosciadium nodiflorum W.D.J. Koch. [4]

The genus is noted for the high rate of hybridization between its species, and the following hybrids have been described:

Distribution and habitat

Helosciadium nodiflorum is common throughout England, Wales and Ireland but much less so in Scotland. [9] It often grows with watercress in wet places. It blooms in July and August and is found in wet habitats including ditches, springs, fens and ponds. [10] [11] The species is also widely documented from brackish estuarine/salt marsh habitats. [12]

Uses

Wild fool's watercress has been traditionally harvested and consumed in several Mediterranean countries, including Spain, Italy, Portugal and Morocco [13] The edible young leaves and tender shoots can be used raw in salads, boiled, or used as a condiment in soups and other dishes. [14] [15]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Apiaceae</span> Family of flowering plants

Apiaceae or Umbelliferae is a family of mostly aromatic flowering plants named after the type genus Apium and commonly known as the celery, carrot or parsley family, or simply as umbellifers. It is the 16th-largest family of flowering plants, with more than 3,800 species in about 446 genera, including such well-known and economically important plants as ajwain, angelica, anise, asafoetida, caraway, carrot, celery, chervil, coriander, cumin, dill, fennel, lovage, cow parsley, parsley, parsnip and sea holly, as well as silphium, a plant whose exact identity is unclear and which may be extinct.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Parsnip</span> Root vegetable in the flowering plant family Apiaceae

The parsnip is a root vegetable closely related to carrot and parsley, all belonging to the flowering plant family Apiaceae. It is a biennial plant usually grown as an annual. Its long taproot has cream-colored skin and flesh, and, left in the ground to mature, becomes sweeter in flavor after winter frosts. In its first growing season, the plant has a rosette of pinnate, mid-green leaves. If unharvested, it produces a flowering stem topped by an umbel of small yellow flowers in its second growing season, later producing pale brown, flat, winged seeds. By this time, the stem has become woody, and the tap root inedible. Precautions should be taken when handling the stems and foliage, as parsnip sap can cause a skin rash or even blindness if exposed to sunlight after handling.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Watercress</span> Species of flowering plant in the cabbage family

Watercress or yellowcress is a species of aquatic flowering plant in the cabbage family Brassicaceae.

<i>Heracleum maximum</i> Species of flowering plant

Heracleum maximum, commonly known as cow parsnip, is the only member of the genus Heracleum native to North America. It is also known as American cow-parsnip, Satan celery, Indian celery, Indian rhubarb, poison turnip or pushki.

<i>Cicuta</i> Genus of plants

Cicuta, commonly known as water hemlock, is a genus of four species of highly poisonous plants in the family Apiaceae. They are perennial herbaceous plants which grow up to 2.5 meters (8 ft) tall, having distinctive small green or white flowers arranged in an umbrella shape (umbel). Plants in this genus may also be referred to as cowbane or poison parsnip. Cicuta is native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere, mainly North America and Europe, typically growing in wet meadows, along streambanks and other wet and marshy areas. These plants bear a close resemblance to other members in the family Apiaceae and may be confused with a number of edible or poisonous plants. The common name hemlock may also be confused with poison hemlock, or with the Hemlock tree.

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

Apium is a genus of about 20 species of flowering plants in the family Apiaceae, with a subcosmopolitan distribution in Europe, Asia, Africa, South America and Australia. They are medium to tall biennials or perennials growing up to 1 m high in the wet soil of marshes and salt marshes, and have pinnate to bipinnate leaves and small white flowers in compound umbels. Some species are edible, notably Apium graveolens, which includes the commercially important vegetables celery, celeriac and Chinese celery. Apium bermejoi from the island of Menorca is one of the rarest plants in Europe, with fewer than 100 individuals left.

<i>Helosciadium bermejoi</i> Species of flowering plant

Helosciadium bermejoi, synonym Apium bermejoi, is a critically endangered species of flowering plant in the family Apiaceae.

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

Sium is a genus of flowering plants in the family Apiaceae. It is widely distributed across Europe, Asia, Africa, and North America. Plants of this genus are commonly called water parsnips.

<i>Sium suave</i> Species of flowering plant

Sium suave, the water parsnip or hemlock waterparsnip, is a perennial wildflower in the family Apiaceae. It is native to many areas of both Asia and North America. The common name water parsnip is due to its similarity to parsnip and its wetland habitat. The alternate common name hemlock waterparsnip is due to its similarity to the highly poisonous spotted water hemlock.

<i>Berula erecta</i> Species of plant

Berula erecta, known as lesser water-parsnip or cutleaf waterparsnip or narrow-leaved water-parsnip, is a member of the carrot family. Growing to around 1 m (3 ft) tall, it is found in or by water. It is widespread across much of Europe, Asia, Australia, and North America.

<i>Euleia heraclei</i> Species of fly

Euleia heraclei, known as the celery fly or the hogweed picture-wing fly is a species of tephritid or fruit flies in the genus Euleia of the family Tephritidae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Totteridge Common</span>

Totteridge Common is a 3.7 hectare Site of Borough Importance for Nature Conservation, Grade II, in Totteridge in the London Borough of Barnet. The nature reserve is the southern verge of the road Totteridge Common, between Totteridge Park and Oak Lodge. It is registered common land owned by the Totteridge Manor Association and comprised the lands of the former Manor of Totteridge which were transferred to the association in 1954.

<i>Epermenia chaerophyllella</i> Species of moth

Epermenia chaerophyllella, also known as the garden lance-wing, is a moth of the family Epermeniidae first described by Johann August Ephraim Goeze in 1783. It is found in all of Europe and Asia Minor.

<i>Helosciadium <span style="font-style:normal;">×</span> longipedunculatum</i> Species of flowering plant

Helosciadium × longipedunculatum, synonym Apium × longipedunculatum, is a hybrid plant in the umbellifer family (Apiaceae); the result of hybridisation between Helosciadium repens and Helosciadium nodiflorum.

<i><span style="font-style:normal;">×</span> Beruladium procurrens</i> Species of plant

× Beruladium procurrens is an intergeneric hybrid plant in the umbellifer family (Apiaceae); the result of hybridisation between Berula erecta and Helosciadium nodiflorum.

<i>Helosciadium</i> Genus of plants

Helosciadium is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the family Apiaceae.

<i>Helosciadium repens</i> Species of flowering plants

Helosciadium repens commonly known as creeping marshwort, is a species of plant belonging to the Apiaceae family. It occurs in Western and Central Europe, being rare throughout its range. It grows in wetland areas where it does not have to compete with taller plants due to grazing by animals, periodic flooding during the winter-spring seasons, or mowing. It is considered a species of near-threatened status at the continental level, critically endangered and legally protected in Poland. It is subject to protection within the European Natura 2000 network.

References

  1. 1 2 Lansdown, R.V. (2013). "Helosciadium nodiflorum". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2013: e.T164030A13575513. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2013-1.RLTS.T164030A13575513.en . Retrieved 16 November 2022.
  2. "Helosciadium nodiflorum (L.) W.D.J.Koch | Plants of the World Online | Kew Science".
  3. Rose, Francis (2006). The Wild Flower Key. London: Frederick Warne. ISBN   978-0-7232-5175-0.
  4. Ronse, A.; Popper, Z.A.; Preston, J.C.; Watson, M.F. (2010). "Taxonomic revision of European Apium L. s.l.: Helosciadium W.D.J.Koch restored". Plant Systematics and Evolution. 287 (1–2): 1–17. Bibcode:2010PSyEv.287....1R. doi:10.1007/s00606-010-0284-3. S2CID   21921727.
  5. Desjardins, Stuart D.; Leslie, Alan C.; Stace, Clive A.; Schwarzacher, Trude; Bailey, John P. (2015). "Intergeneric hybridisation between Berula erecta and Helosciadium nodiflorum (Apiaceae)". Taxon. 64 (4): 784–794. doi:10.12705/644.9. ISSN   1996-8175.
  6. Desjardins, Stuart D. (2016-09-01). "Molecular confirmation of Helosciadium × moorei ( H. inundatum × H. nodiflorum ; Apiaceae) from County Cork, Ireland". New Journal of Botany. 6 (2–3): 90–97. Bibcode:2016NJBot...6...90D. doi:10.1080/20423489.2016.1271294. ISSN   2042-3489. S2CID   90980061.
  7. Desjardins, Stuart D.; Shaw, Andrew G.; Webb, Judith A. (2020-02-26). "Hybridisation and introgression in British Helosciadium (Apiaceae)". British & Irish Botany. 2 (1): 27–42. doi: 10.33928/bib.2020.02.027 . ISSN   2632-4970.
  8. Rita, Juan; Capó, Miquel; Moragues, Eva; Bota, Josefina; Cursach, Joana (2018-02-01). "Hybridization processes in an introduced subpopulation of an endangered plant: Management strategies to guarantee the conservation of Helosciadium bermejoi (Apiaceae)". Journal for Nature Conservation. 41: 26–34. Bibcode:2018JNatC..41...26R. doi:10.1016/j.jnc.2017.10.006. ISSN   1617-1381.
  9. Apium nodiflorum Peter Llewellyn Wild Flowers of the British Isles, Accessed 2011
  10. Fool's-water-cress Wild flowers of Ireland. Accessed July 2011 Apium nodiflorum Fool's-water-cress]
  11. Apium nodiflorum (Fool's-water-cress)
  12. envirolink.govt.nz https://envirolink.govt.nz/assets/Envirolink/1624-HZLC127-Manawatu-Wanganui-Estuaries-Habitat-Mapping-Vulnerability-Assessment-and-Monitoring-Recommendations-Related-to-Issues-of-Eutrophication-and-Sedimentation.pdf . Retrieved 7 September 2021.{{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)[ title missing ]
  13. de Cortes Sanchez-Mata, Maria; Tardio, Javier (13 April 2016). Mediterranean Wild Edible Plants: Ethnobotany and Food Composition Tables. Springer. ISBN   978-1-4939-3327-3.
  14. Parada, M; Carrió, E; Vallès, J (2011). "Ethnobotany of food plants in the Alt Empordà region (Catalonia, Iberian Peninsula)". Journal of Applied Botany and Food Quality (84): 11–25.
  15. Guarrera, P.M.; Savo, V (2016). "Wild food plants used in traditional vegetable mixtures in Italy". Journal of Ethnopharmacology. 185: 202–234. doi:10.1016/j.jep.2016.02.050. PMID   26944238.