Salicornia bigelovii

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Salicornia bigelovii
Salicornia bigelovii.jpg
Salicornia bigelovii [1]
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Order: Caryophyllales
Family: Amaranthaceae
Genus: Salicornia
Species:
S. bigelovii
Binomial name
Salicornia bigelovii

Salicornia bigelovii is a species of flowering plant in the family Amaranthaceae known by the common names dwarf saltwort [2] and dwarf glasswort. It is native to coastal areas of the eastern and southern United States, Belize, and coastal Mexico (both the east and west coasts). [3] [4] [5] It is a plant of salt marshes, a halophyte which grows in saltwater. It is an annual herb producing an erect, branching stem which is jointed at many internodes. The fleshy, green to red stem can reach about 60 cm in height. The leaves are usually small plates, pairs of which are fused into a band around the stem. The inflorescence is a dense, sticklike spike of flowers. Each flower is made up of a fused pocket of sepals enclosing the stamens and stigmas, with no petals. The fruit is an utricle containing tiny, fuzzy seeds. The southern part of the species range is represented by the Petenes mangroves of the Yucatán, where it is a subdominant plant associate in the mangroves. [6]

Contents

Uses

This plant is gaining scientific attention for its potential to serve as an oil crop that can be grown in desert environments and maintained with water containing high levels of salts. [7] It is the source of salicornia oil. The seed of the plant is up to 33% oil. [8] The oil contains up to 79% linoleic acid and is functionally similar to safflower oil. [9] It can be used as a cooking oil and a replacement for more valuable oils in chicken feed. Domestic animals can be fed the plant as a forage. [10] The plant could also be a source of biofuel. [11] Salicornia has numerous health benefits and the bioactive metabolites of salicornia have important pharmaceutical applications. [12]

Since the plant is a halophytic coastline species which grows in saltwater, it can be irrigated with seawater, [13] making it a potential crop for landscapes that can support few other crop plants. [8] [10] The plants can also be watered with high-salt drainage water, such as the effluent from farmland in California's Central Valley. [14] Fields of the plant have been grown in wastewater from aquaculture farms in Eritrea and harvested for animal feed. [11]

Related Research Articles

Biosalinity is the study and practice of using saline (salty) water for irrigating agricultural crops.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Halophyte</span> Salt-tolerant plant

A halophyte is a salt-tolerant plant that grows in soil or waters of high salinity, coming into contact with saline water through its roots or by salt spray, such as in saline semi-deserts, mangrove swamps, marshes and sloughs, and seashores. The word derives from Ancient Greek ἅλας (halas) 'salt' and φυτόν (phyton) 'plant'. Halophytes have different anatomy, physiology and biochemistry than glycophytes. An example of a halophyte is the salt marsh grass Spartina alterniflora. Relatively few plant species are halophytes—perhaps only 2% of all plant species. Information about many of the earth's halophytes can be found in the halophyte database.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rapeseed</span> Plant species grown for its oil-rich seed

Rapeseed, also known as rape and oilseed rape, is a bright-yellow flowering member of the family Brassicaceae, cultivated mainly for its oil-rich seed, which naturally contains appreciable amounts of erucic acid. The term "canola" denotes a group of rapeseed cultivars that were bred to have very low levels of erucic acid and which are especially prized for use as human and animal food. Rapeseed is the third-largest source of vegetable oil and the second-largest source of protein meal in the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Safflower</span> Species of plant

Safflower is a highly branched, herbaceous, thistle-like annual plant in the family Asteraceae. It is one of the world's oldest crops, and today is commercially cultivated for vegetable oil extracted from the seeds. Plants are 30 to 150 cm tall with globular flower heads having yellow, orange, or red flowers. Each branch will usually have from one to five flower heads containing 15 to 20 seeds per head. Safflower is native to arid environments having seasonal rain. It grows a deep taproot which enables it to thrive in such environments.

<i>Salicornia</i> Genus of flowering plants in the family Amaranthaceae

Salicornia is a genus of succulent, halophytic flowering plants in the family Amaranthaceae that grow in salt marshes, on beaches, and among mangroves. Salicornia species are native to North America, Europe, central Asia, and southern Africa. Common names for the genus include glasswort, pickleweed, picklegrass, and marsh samphire; these common names are also used for some species not in Salicornia. To French speakers in Atlantic Canada, they are known colloquially as titines de souris. The main European species is often eaten, called marsh samphire in Britain, and the main North American species is occasionally sold in grocery stores or appears on restaurant menus as sea beans, samphire greens or sea asparagus.

<i>Batis</i> (plant) Genus of plants

Batis is a genus of two species of flowering plants, the only genus in the family Bataceae. They are halophytic plants, native to the coastal salt marshes of warm temperate and tropical America and tropical Australasia.

<i>Manilkara zapota</i> Tropical evergreen tree species in the flowering plant family Sapotaceae

Manilkara zapota, commonly known as sapodilla, sapote, chicozapote, chicoo, chicle, naseberry, nispero, or soapapple, among other names, is an evergreen tree native to southern Mexico and Central America. An example natural occurrence is in coastal Yucatán, in the Petenes mangroves ecoregion, where it is a subdominant plant species. It was introduced to the Philippines during Spanish colonization. It is grown in large quantities in Mexico and in tropical Asia, including India, Pakistan, Thailand, Malaysia, Cambodia, Indonesia, Vietnam, Bangladesh, as well as in the Caribbean.

<i>Chenopodium pallidicaule</i> Species of plant

Chenopodium pallidicaule, known as cañihua, canihua or cañahua and also kañiwa or kaniwa, is a species of goosefoot, similar in character and uses to the closely related quinoa.

<i>Distichlis palmeri</i> Species of flowering plant

Distichlis palmeri is an obligate emergent perennial rhizomatous dioecious halophytic C4 grass in the Poaceae (Gramineae) family. D. palmeri is a saltwater marsh grass endemic to the tidal marshes of the northern part of the Gulf of California and Islands section of the Sonoran Desert. D.palmeri is not drought tolerant. It does withstand surface drying between supra tidal events because roots extend downward to more than 1 meter where coastal substrata is still moist.

<i>Thlaspi arvense</i> Species of flowering plant in the cabbage family Brassicaceae

Thlaspi arvense, known by the common name field pennycress, is a flowering plant in the cabbage family Brassicaceae. It is native to Eurasia, and is a common weed throughout much of North America and its home.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Glasswort</span> Index of plants with the same common name

The glassworts are various succulent, annual halophytic plants, that is, plants that thrive in saline environments, such as seacoasts and salt marshes. The original English glasswort plants belong to the genus Salicornia, but today the glassworts include halophyte plants from several genera, some of which are native to continents unknown to the medieval English, and growing in ecosystems, such as mangrove swamps, never envisioned when the term glasswort was coined.

Salicornia oil is a pressed oil, derived from the seeds of the Salicornia bigelovii, a halophyte native to Mexico.

<i>Typha domingensis</i> Species of plant

Typha domingensis, known commonly as southern cattail or cumbungi, is a perennial herbaceous plant of the genus Typha.

<i>Malvaviscus arboreus</i> Species of flowering plant

Malvaviscus arboreus is a species of flowering plant in the hibiscus family, Malvaceae, that is native to the American South, Mexico, Central America, and South America. The specific name, arboreus, refers to the tree-like appearance of a mature plant. It is now popular in cultivation and goes by many English names including wax mallow, Turk's cap (mallow), Turk's turban, sleeping hibiscus, manzanilla, manzanita, ladies teardrop and Scotchman's purse; many of these common names refer to other, in some cases unrelated, plants. Its flowers do not open fully and help attract butterflies and hummingbirds.

<i>Salicornia virginica</i> Species of aquatic plant

Salicornia virginica is a halophytic perennial dicot which grows in various zones of intertidal salt marshes and can be found in alkaline flats. It is native to various regions of the Northern Hemisphere including both coasts of North America from Canada to Mexico.

<i>Salicornia europaea</i> Species of flowering plant in the amaranth family Amaranthaceae

Salicornia europaea, known as marsh samphire, common glasswort or just glasswort, is a halophytic annual dicot flowering plant in the family Amaranthaceae. Glasswort is a succulent herb also known as "pickle weed" or "marsh samphire". As a succulent, it has high water content, which accounts for its slightly translucent look and gives it the descriptive name "glasswort". To some people, it is known as "chicken toe" because of its shape. To others, it is called "saltwort". It grows in various zones of intertidal salt marshes, on beaches, and among mangroves.

Saltwater aquaponics is a combination of plant cultivation and fish rearing, systems with similarities to standard aquaponics, except that it uses saltwater instead of the more commonly used freshwater. In some instances, this may be diluted saltwater. The concept is being researched as a sustainable way to eliminate the stresses that are put on local environments by conventional fish farming practices who expel wastewater into the coastal zones, all while creating complementary crops.

Crop tolerance to seawater is the ability of an agricultural crop to withstand the high salinity induced by irrigation with seawater, or a mixture of fresh water and seawater. There are crops that can grow on seawater and demonstration farms have shown the feasibility. The government of the Netherlands reports a breakthrough in food security as specific varieties of potatoes, carrots, red onions, white cabbage and broccoli appear to thrive if they are irrigated with salt water.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Biosaline agriculture</span> Production of crops in salt-rich conditions

Biosaline agriculture is the production and growth of plants in saline rich groundwater and/or soil. In water scarce locations, salinity poses a serious threat to agriculture due to its toxicity to most plants. Abiotic stressors such as salinity, extreme temperatures, and drought make plant growth difficult in many climate regions. Integration of biosaline solutions is becoming necessary in arid and semiarid climates where freshwater abundance is low and seawater is ample. Salt-tolerant plants that flourish in high-salinity conditions are called halophytes. Halophyte implementation has the potential to restore salt-rich environments, provide for global food demands, produce medicine and biofuels, and conserve fresh water.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Petenes mangroves</span>

The Petenes mangroves ecoregion covers mangrove habitat along the Gulf of Mexico coast of southern Mexico, where Campeche state and Yucatan state meet, centering on the Celestun Lagoon inland from the barrier-island town of Celestún. Because the region has relatively little rainfall and no rivers feeding the lagoons, the freshwater to support the mangrove ecosystem springs from underground aquifers. The area is important for migratory birds, and as a nesting area for sea turtles. The area around the Celestun Lagoon is protected by the Ría Celestún Biosphere Reserve, a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, and Los Petenes Biosphere Reserve in Campeche.

References

  1. Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913. Illustrated flora of the northern states and Canada. Vol. 2: 22.
  2. USDA, NRCS (n.d.). "Salicornia bigelovii". The PLANTS Database (plants.usda.gov). Greensboro, North Carolina: National Plant Data Team. Retrieved 26 October 2015.
  3. Godfrey, R. K. & J. W. Wooten. 1981. Aquatic and Wetland Plants of Southeastern United States Dicotyledons 1–944. Univ. Georgia Press, Athens.
  4. Carnevali, G., J. L. Tapia-Muñoz, R. Duno de Stefano & I. M. Ramírez Morillo. 2010. Flora Ilustrada de la Peninsula Yucatán: Listado Florístico 1–326.
  5. Balick, M. J., M. H. Nee & D.E. Atha. 2000. Checklist of the vascular plants of Belize. Memoirs of The New York Botanical Garden 85: i–ix, 1–246
  6. Makkawi, Yassir; El Sayed, Yehya; Lyra, Dionysia-Angeliki; Pour, Fatemeh Hassan; Khan, Muhammad; Badrelzaman, Mohamed (2021-04-15). "Assessment of the pyrolysis products from halophyte Salicornia bigelovii cultivated in a desert environment". Fuel. 290: 119518. doi:10.1016/j.fuel.2020.119518. ISSN   0016-2361. S2CID   234151863.
  7. 1 2 Glenn, E. P., et al. (1991). Salicornia bigelovii Torr.: An oilseed halophyte for seawater irrigation. Science 251:4997 1065-67.
  8. Anwar, F., et al. (2002). Analytical characterization of Salicornia bigelovii seed oil cultivated in Pakistan. J. Agric. Food Chem. 50:15 4210-14
  9. 1 2 Bashan, Y., et al. (2000). Growth promotion of seawater irrigated oilseed halophyte Salicornia bigelovii inoculated with mangrove rhizosphere bacteria and halotolerant Azospirillum spp. Biol Fertil Soils 32:265-72.
  10. 1 2 Dickerson, M. Letting the sea cultivate the land. Los Angeles Times July 10, 2008
  11. Wahome, Cyrus. "Are There Health Benefits of Salicornia?". WebMD. Retrieved 2023-03-26.
  12. Lyra, Dionyssia Angeliki; Ismail, Shoaib; Brown, J. Jed (2020), Hirich, Abdelaziz; Choukr-Allah, Redouane; Ragab, Ragab (eds.), "Crop Potential of Six Salicornia bigelovii Populations Under Two Salinity Water Treatments Cultivated in a Desert Environment: A Field Study", Emerging Research in Alternative Crops, Cham: Springer International Publishing, pp. 313–333, doi:10.1007/978-3-319-90472-6_14, ISBN   978-3-319-90472-6, S2CID   234959674 , retrieved 2023-03-26
  13. Grattan, S. R., et al. (2008). Feasibility of irrigating pickleweed (Salicornia bigelovii Torr) with hyper-saline drainage water. J. Environ. Qual. 37 S-149.