Rumicastrum balonense

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Rumicastrum balonense
Calandrinia balonnensis habit.jpg
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Order: Caryophyllales
Family: Montiaceae
Genus: Rumicastrum
Species:
R. balonense
Binomial name
Rumicastrum balonense
(Lindl.) Carolin (2020)
CBalonensis range map v2.jpg
Occurrence data from AVH
Synonyms [1]
  • Calandrinia balonensisLindl. (1848)
  • Claytonia balonensis(Lindl.) Tate (1880)
  • Parakeelya balonensis(Lindl.) Hershk. (1998 publ. 1999)

Rumicastrum balonense, synonym Calandrinia balonensis, is a succulent plant native to arid and semi-arid regions of Australia. [2]

The scientific name for the species comes from the Balonne River in Queensland, where the first specimen was found. Calandrinia , its former genus, is named for Jean Louis Calandrini, a 19th-century Genevan professor and botanical author, [3] Common names for R. balonense include parakeelya, broad-leaf parakeelya, broad-leaved parakeelya and Balonne parakeelya. [3] [4] [5] The word “parakeelya” derives from one of the many Aboriginal Australian names for the plant. [6] R. balonense is marketed as a garden plant under the name Calandrinia ‘Mystique’. [7]

Description

R. balonense is a succulent annual herb with bright green foliage that grows in a spreading form up to 60 cm across, with erect leafy flower-stems to 30 cm high. [2] [8] The leaves are fleshy, approximately 5 to 20 mm wide and 20 to 100 mm long, with a groove running lengthwise along the middle of the upper surface. [2] Although leaves appear almost flat when viewed from above, if the leaf is turned over to display the underside, its succulence is apparent. [8] Leaves form a rosette at the base of the plant and extend up the flower-stems. [2]

R. balonense foliage Calandrinia balonensis 3.jpg
R. balonense foliage
R. balonense flower Calandrinia balonensis 2.jpg
R. balonense flower

There are three to four flowers at the top of each stem or on short leafy branches. [2] Flowers are vivid dark pink or purple with five petals 11 to 15 mm long and bright yellow stamens in the center. [3] The flowers open during the day and close just before sunset. The fruit is a small capsule that contains numerous dark-red seeds. The capsule is 5 to 9 mm long and 4 to 7 mm wide, and the seeds are at least 1 mm in diameter. [2]

Taxonomy

R. balonense is one of 66 Rumicastrum species, which are native to Australia, New Guinea, and Tasmania. [9] Along with the pigweeds ( Portulaca species), Rumicastrum are the most prominent succulent species in Australia. [10] The Rumicastrum species were formerly classified in genus Calandrinia and considered to be monophyletic (share the same ancestry) with the 14 Calandrinia species from the Americas. [11] However, in 1987 Australian taxonomist Roger Carolin proposed that the American and Australian Calandrinia are not closely related to each other based on morphological analyses. Follow-up studies also supported two different lineages, based in part on the absence of Calandrinia on islands along possible dispersal pathways between South America and Australia and in part on genomic data. [12] [13]

Although the need for a nomenclature change was widely agreed, a debate arose over the appropriate naming of the Australasian Calandrinia, and the new genus name is not universally agreed to. [14] A proposal was made to rename the genus as Parakeelya on the grounds that it is used as a common name for the whole genus, derives from South Australian and Central Desert Indigenous names, and is already accepted as a synonym for some Australian species. [15] In 2020 Mark Hershkovitz, the author of Parakeelya, published a paper arguing that the Australasian species should be reclassified into genus Rumicastrum according to established nomenclatural rules. [14] Plants of the World Online also accepts Rumicastrum. [1] [14] Other sources are undecided. [11]

Distribution and habitat

R. balonense is widely distributed in the arid and semi-arid zones of New South Wales, the Northern Territory, Queensland, South Australia, and Western Australia. [3] [16] It is most common on sandplains, sand dunes and rises and along sandy intermittent watercourses. It is less frequently found on gravelly hills of neutral or acidic rocks. [2] [6] The plant occurs in association with mulga and poplar box woodlands and in spinifex communities. [2] [6]

Ecology

The distinctive features and life history of R. balonense reflect the requirements of its distribution in dry regions. The most noticeable of these features is succulence, an evolutionary strategy in which plants’ leaves or roots are thickened, fleshy, and engorged to retain water in arid climates or soil conditions. [10] Although succulence is rare among Australian plants when compared to arid regions in the Americas and Africa, it is a defining characteristic of Rumicastrum and Calandrinia. [10] R. balonense has “leaf succulence,” in which the majority of its water reserves are stored in the leaves. [8] R. balonense utilises crassulean acid metabolism (CAM) at a low level. [17] In CAM photosynthesis, plants can obtain carbon dioxide by opening their stomata at night when water loss is reduced. Carbon dioxide absorbed at night is stored in dilute form in the succulent tissues until daylight, when photosynthesis is completed. [10] Like other Rumicastrum with CAM, R. balonense obtains most of its carbon through daytime photosynthesis, unlike some other well-known succulents such as cacti that may obtain most or all required carbon at night. [17]

R. balonense has been classified as a “drought evader,” a short-lived plant that spends most of its life as a dormant seed or a small plant, until a large rainfall event triggers germination or growth, in contrast to “drought tolerators” which are perennial plants that can survive long periods without rainfall. [18] In drier periods R. balonense can grow as a small single rosette. After significant rainfall it rapidly develops from this single rosette to a large green mass of leaves and stems that can carpet the sandplains and dunes with massed, colourful displays. [8] It tends to last longer than most arid or semi-arid zone annuals because of its ability to store water in its succulent leaves. [19] R. balonense may flower any month but is most commonly reported to do so in spring. [6] [2]

Uses

R. balonense was an important food for Aboriginal people in Central Australia. [20] Pitjantjatjara people steam the leaves, roots and stems before eating, and would eat the succulent leaves raw for their moisture content in an emergency. [19] The small black seeds can be ground into a paste that is rich in protein (14.6 percent) and fat (17 percent), but gathering the seeds in useful quantities is labour-intensive. [20]

The widespread use of R. balonense is reflected in numerous terms for it in Aboriginal languages:

R. balonense leaves were also a food source for European settlers and explorers. Alice Duncan-Kemp, an author and Indigenous culture recorder, described R. balonense as palatable when cooked and dressed with seasoning or white sauce. [20]

R. balonense is considered a palatable and useful forage species for sheep and cattle. Some Rumicastrum species have been reported to contain high levels of oxalic acid, but it is considered that none of the species, including R. balonense, occur at such abundance as to cause problems for stock. [2] R. balonense has been classified as a preferred food source of feral camels in Central Australia.

Cultivation

A selection of this species, cv 'Mystique', has been registered and propagated as a clone. [21] Like other Rumicastrum species, it is self-incompatible, and therefore does not set seed unless grown with other clones. [22] It can be propagated by cuttings and the resulting plants flower prolifically, but they may be difficult to maintain for more than one year. [23] Wild-type plants also make attractive garden plants, and if several clones are grown together, they interpollinate and set abundant seed. [23] The seed germinates only sparsely without some form of scarification of the seed coat, but ~80% germination has been reported when the coat of the tiny seed is nicked with a scalpel, using a dissecting microscope. [24] [25]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cactus</span> Family of mostly succulent plants, adapted to dry environments

A cactus is a member of the plant family Cactaceae, a family comprising about 127 genera with some 1,750 known species of the order Caryophyllales. The word cactus derives, through Latin, from the Ancient Greek word κάκτος (káktos), a name originally used by Theophrastus for a spiny plant whose identity is now not certain. Cacti occur in a wide range of shapes and sizes. They are native to the Americas, ranging from Patagonia in the south to parts of western Canada in the north, with the exception of Rhipsalis baccifera, which is also found in Africa and Sri Lanka. Cacti are adapted to live in very dry environments, including the Atacama Desert, one of the driest places on Earth. Because of this, cacti show many adaptations to conserve water. For example, almost all cacti are succulents, meaning they have thickened, fleshy parts adapted to store water. Unlike many other succulents, the stem is the only part of most cacti where this vital process takes place. Most species of cacti have lost true leaves, retaining only spines, which are highly modified leaves. As well as defending against herbivores, spines help prevent water loss by reducing air flow close to the cactus and providing some shade. In the absence of true leaves, cacti's enlarged stems carry out photosynthesis.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mistletoe</span> Common name for various parasitic plants that grow on trees and shrubs

Mistletoe is the common name for obligate hemiparasitic plants in the order Santalales. They are attached to their host tree or shrub by a structure called the haustorium, through which they extract water and nutrients from the host plant.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Crassulacean acid metabolism</span> Metabolic process

Crassulacean acid metabolism, also known as CAM photosynthesis, is a carbon fixation pathway that evolved in some plants as an adaptation to arid conditions that allows a plant to photosynthesize during the day, but only exchange gases at night. In a plant using full CAM, the stomata in the leaves remain shut during the day to reduce evapotranspiration, but they open at night to collect carbon dioxide and allow it to diffuse into the mesophyll cells. The CO2 is stored as four-carbon malic acid in vacuoles at night, and then in the daytime, the malate is transported to chloroplasts where it is converted back to CO2, which is then used during photosynthesis. The pre-collected CO2 is concentrated around the enzyme RuBisCO, increasing photosynthetic efficiency. This mechanism of acid metabolism was first discovered in plants of the family Crassulaceae.

<i>Santalum acuminatum</i> Species of plant

Santalum acuminatum, the desert quandong, is a hemiparasitic plant in the sandalwood family, Santalaceae, which is widely dispersed throughout the central deserts and southern areas of Australia. The species, especially its edible fruit, is also commonly referred to as quandong or native peach. The use of the fruit as an exotic flavouring, one of the best known bush tucker, has led to the attempted domestication of the species.

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

Calandrinia is a genus of flowering plants known as purslanes and redmaids. It includes 37 species of annual and perennial herbs which bear colorful flowers in shades of red to purple and white. Species of this genus are native to the Americas, including western and southern South America, Central America, and western North America. Some species have been introduced to parts of Australia, New Zealand, southern Africa, Asia, and Europe. Over 60 species native to Australia and New Guinea that were formerly included in Calandrinia are now placed in a separate genus, Rumicastrum or Parakeelya. A single eastern Australian species named in 2022, Calandrinia petrophila, is still included in Calandrinia, but will be placed into the Australian genus when the name of the new genus is finally settled.

<i>Exocarpos cupressiformis</i> Species of plant

Exocarpos cupressiformis, with common names that include native cherry, cherry ballart, and cypress cherry, belongs to the sandalwood family of plants. It is a species endemic to Australia. Occasionally the genus name is spelt "Exocarpus" but it appears to be mostly no longer in use.

<i>Atriplex semibaccata</i> Species of plant

Atriplex semibaccata, commonly known as Australian saltbush, berry saltbush, or creeping saltbush, is a species of flowering plant in the family Amaranthaceae and is endemic to Australia. It is a perennial herb native to Western Australia, South Australia, Queensland and New South Wales, but has been introduced into other states and to overseas countries. It flowers and fruits in spring, and propagates from seed when the fruit splits open. This species of saltbush is adapted to inconsistent rainfall, temperature and humidity extremes and to poor soil. It is used for rehabilitation, medicine, as a cover crop and for fodder. Its introduction to other countries has had an environmental and economic impact on them.

<i>Acacia stenophylla</i> Species of tree

Acacia stenophylla is a species of Acacia commonly referred to as the shoestring acacia. It is an evergreen tree in the family Fabaceae native to Australia. It is not considered rare or endangered.

A xerophyte is a species of plant that has adaptations to survive in an environment with little liquid water. Examples of xerophytes include cacti, pineapple and some gymnosperm plants. The morphology and physiology of xerophytes are adapted to conserve water during dry periods. Some species called resurrection plants can survive long periods of extreme dryness or desiccation of their tissues, during which their metabolic activity may effectively shut down. Plants with such morphological and physiological adaptations are said to be xeromorphic. Xerophytes such as cacti are capable of withstanding extended periods of dry conditions as they have deep-spreading roots and capacity to store water. Their waxy, thorny leaves prevent loss of moisture.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Succulent plant</span> Plants adapted to arid conditions

In botany, succulent plants, also known as succulents, are plants with parts that are thickened, fleshy, and engorged, usually to retain water in arid climates or soil conditions. The word succulent comes from the Latin word sucus, meaning "juice" or "sap".

<i>Agave</i> Genus of flowering plants closely related to yucca

Agave is a genus of monocots native to the arid regions of the Americas. The genus is primarily known for its succulent and xerophytic species that typically form large rosettes of strong, fleshy leaves. Agave now includes species formerly placed in a number of other genera, such as Manfreda, ×Mangave, Polianthes and Prochnyanthes.

<i>Geranium potentilloides</i> Species of flowering plant

Geranium potentilloides, belongs to the family Geraniaceae, and is a small prostrate perennial herb that can grow up to 60cm high. The species is commonly referred to as Soft Cranesbill or Cinquefoil geranium.

<i>Goodenia paradoxa</i> Species of plant

Goodenia paradoxa, commonly known as spur velleia or spur goodenia, is a species of flowering plant in the family Goodeniaceae, and is endemic to Australia. It is a perennial herb covered with soft hairs, and has egg-shaped to elliptic leaves with toothed edges and yellow flowers on an ascending flowering stem.

<i>Goodenia glabrata</i> Species of plant

Goodenia glabrata, commonly known as pee the bed, is a species of flowering plant in the family Goodeniaceae and is native to mainland Australia. It is a mostly glabrous annual herb with ascending flowering stems, oblong to lance-shaped leaves with toothed edges, and yellow flowers.

<i>Rumicastrum corrigioloides</i> Annual herb

Rumicastrum corrigioloides is an annual herb in the family Montiaceae, and is native to Western Australia, South Australia, and Victoria.

<i>Rumicastrum granuliferum</i> Species of plant

Rumicastrum granuliferum is an annual herb in the family Montiaceae, and is native to New South Wales, Tasmania, Western Australia, South Australia, and Victoria.

<i>Atriplex holocarpa</i> Species of flowering plant

Atriplex holocarpa is a low-growing species of Atriplex (saltbush) found throughout arid regions of Australia. A. holocarpa is commonly known as pop saltbush, because its carpals pop when stepped upon.

<i>Carpobrotus modestus</i> Species of succulent

Carpobrotus modestus, commonly known as inland pigface, is a succulent perennial of the family Aizoaceae, native to Australia. It produces purple flowers which mature into fruits and is mainly used as a groundcover succulent or as a drought tolerant plant.

<i>Atriplex angulata</i> Species of plant in the family Amaranthaceae

Atriplex angulata, commonly known as fan saltbush or angular saltbush, is a species of flowering plant in the family Amaranthaceae. It is an annual to short-lived perennial subshrub, native to Australia, distributed throughout drier parts of the mainland.

<i>Rumicastrum</i> Genus of plants

Rumicastrum is a genus of plants in the family Montiaceae. It includes 66 species native to Australia, Tasmania, and New Guinea. These species were formerly classed in genus Calandrinia, which was discovered to be paraphyletic.

References

  1. 1 2 Rumicastrum balonense (Lindl.) Carolin. Plants of the World Online . Retrieved 26 November 2023.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Cunningham, G. M., Mulham, W. E., Milthorpe, P. L., & Leigh, J. H. (1992). Plants of western New South Wales. Melbourne & Sydney, Australia: Inkata Press. pp. 297–298.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  3. 1 2 3 4 Australian National Botanic Gardens, Parks Australia. "Calandrinia balonensis - Growing Native Plants". www.anbg.gov.au. Retrieved 18 October 2020.
  4. ↑ "Fact sheet for Calandrinia balonensis". www.flora.sa.gov.au. Retrieved 18 October 2020.
  5. ↑ "PlantNET - FloraOnline". plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au. Retrieved 18 October 2020.
  6. 1 2 3 4 "NT Flora". eflora.nt.gov.au. Retrieved 18 October 2020.
  7. ↑ "Calandrinia 'Mystique'". www.anbg.gov.au. Retrieved 18 October 2020.
  8. 1 2 3 4 Kapitany, A. The Australian Calandrinia. Boronia, Victoria: Kapitany Concepts. p. 6.
  9. ↑ Rumicastrum Ulbr. Plants of the World Online . Retrieved 13 January 2024.
  10. 1 2 3 4 Low, T. (2016). "Where are all the succulents?". Wildlife Australia. 53: 12–14.
  11. 1 2 Thiele, Kevin (29 December 2018). "On the Horizon: Calandrinia changing to Parakeelya". Taxonomy Australia. Retrieved 18 October 2020.
  12. ↑ Tahir, S.S. and Carolin, R.C. (1990). "Phylogeny and origin of Australian Calandrinia (Portulacaceae)". Pakistan Journal of Botany. 22: 1–4.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  13. ↑ Hancock, L.P, Obbens, F., Moore, A.J., Thiele, K., de Vos, J.M, West, J., and Edwards, E.J. (2018). "Phylogeny, evolution, and biogeographic history of Calandrinia (Montiaceae)". American Journal of Botany. 105 (6): 1021–1034. doi: 10.1002/ajb2.1110 . PMID   29995314. S2CID   51612043.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  14. 1 2 3 Hershkovitz, M.A. (2020). "Rumicastrum Ulbrich (Montiaceae): a beautiful name for the Australian calandrinias". Phytologia. 102: 116–123.
  15. ↑ Thiele, K.R., Obbens, L., Hancock, E., Edwards, E. and West, J.G. (2018). "Proposal to conserve the name Parakeelya against Rumicastrum". Taxon. 67: 214–215. doi:10.12705/671.25.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  16. ↑ AVH (2020). "The Australasian Virtual Herbarium, Council of Heads of Australasian Herbaria" . Retrieved 22 October 2020.
  17. 1 2 Hancock, L.G., Holtum, J.A.M., and Edwards, E.J. (2019). "The Evolution of CAM Photosynthesis in Australian Calandrinia Reveals Lability in C3+CAM Phenotypes and a Possible Constraint to the Evolution of Strong CAM". Integrative and Comparative Biology. 59 (3): 517–534. doi: 10.1093/icb/icz089 . PMID   31161205.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  18. ↑ Keith, D. (2004). Ocean shores to desert dunes – The native vegetation of New South Wales and the ACT. Hurstville, NSW: Department of Environment and Conservation (NSW). p. 279.
  19. 1 2 3 Latz, P. (1995). Bushfires and Bushtucker: Aboriginal Plant Use in Central Australia. Alice Springs, Northern Territory, Australia: IAD Press. pp. 134–135.
  20. 1 2 3 Low, T. (1988). Wild Food Plants of Australia. Sydney, Australia: Harpers Collings Publishers. p. 157.
  21. ↑ "Calandrinia 'Mystique'". www.anbg.gov.au. Retrieved 22 October 2020.
  22. ↑ Wickramasinghe Priyanka, Harrison Dion K., Johnston Margaret E. (2010). "Reproductive biology and intergeneric breeding compatibility of ornamental Portulaca and Calandrinia (Portulacaceae)". Australian Journal of Botany. 57 (8): 697–707. doi:10.1071/BT09107.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  23. 1 2 "Parakeelya habitat - Vertical gardens on walls, trees and water tanks". sites.google.com. Retrieved 22 October 2020.
  24. ↑ "Seeds of South Australia - Home Page". spapps.environment.sa.gov.au. Retrieved 22 October 2020.
  25. ↑ "Seed Information Database: Search Results". data.kew.org. Retrieved 22 October 2020.
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