Cardamine africana L.

Species

Angiosperms > Brassicales > Brassicaceae > Cardamine

Characteristics

Perennial rhizomatous herb with 10-80 cm high, erect or ascending shoots appearing solitary or clustered. Stems often basally rooting, unbranched or with a few branches, most from the lower parts, glabrous or basally puberulent. Leaves tripartite (rarely with one additional small pair of leaflets), glabrous or hispidulous above; basal leaves up to 15 cm long with up to 8 cm long petioles, soon disappearing; cauline leaves few to numerous, 5-20 cm long, in lower leaves with proportionally very long (up to 12 cm), slightly auriculate petioles; terminal leaflet broadly to narrowly ovate or subtriangular, acute to acuminate (but the tip often obtuse with a short point), at base truncate or rounded (in upper leaves also cuneate), often oblique, crenate, serrate or incised (especially plants from New Guinea), 1.5-7.5 by 0.8-4 cm on 2-20 mm long petiolules; lateral leaflets of similar shape as the terminal, slightly to considerably smaller, 0.5-6.5 by 0.2-3 cm on 0.5-10 mm long petioles. Racemes terminal with 5-20 flowers on 1-25 cm long peduncles, in fruit condensed or loose, 2-25 cm long; pedicels straight, erecto-patent, 4-30 mm long. Sepals green with hyaline margins, elliptic, 1.4-4.5 mm. Petals white to pale violet, spathulate, broadly obtuse, at least twice as long as sepals, 3-12 mm long, ± ⅓ as broad. Stamens 6 with subulate filaments; anthers 1-1.5 mm long. Ovary cylindrical with short narrower style and somewhat expanded stigma. Siliqua straight, linear, 20-55 by 1.3-2.5 mm, tapered towards style, which is 0.6-2.5 by c. 0.4 mm. Seeds red or dark brown, broadly elliptic or oblong in outline, 1.5-2.5 by 1-1.5 mm, smooth.
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Perennial herb, with single or clustered shoots arising from a rhizome.. Stems erect or ascending, often basally rooting, unbranched or with a few branches below the middle, 5–80 cm. high, often with elongate internodes, basally glabrous or finely pubescent, upwards glabrous.. Leaves tripartite, with long petioles, which are clasping, non-auricuate, usually hispidulous, 5–95 mm. long; leaflets broadly to narrowly ovate, acuminate (rarely obtuse), cuneate to truncate, serrate to crenate, usually sparsely strigose on both surfaces, whitish green beneath; terminal leaflet 8–72 mm. long, with a 1–22 mm. long petiole; lateral leaflets 3–64 mm. long, basally oblique, sessile or with up to 11 mm. long petioles.. Racemes with 5–20 flowers on 4–11 mm. long peduncles, in fruit condensed or lax, 2–16 cm. long; pedicels ascending, 4–30 mm. long with nearly erect siliqua.. Sepals green with white margins, elliptic, 1.4–4.5 mm. long, glabrous.. Petals white to pale violet, spathulate, broadly obtuse, at least twice as long as the sepals, 3.2–9 mm. long and ± 1/3 as broad.. Stamens 6, with linear basally widening filaments; anthers ± 1.5 mm. long.. Ovary cylindrical, with a short narrower style and a rather flat stigma.. Siliqua glabrous, linear, 23–56 mm. long, 1.3–2.5 mm. broad, tapered towards the style, which is 0.6–1.4 mm. long and ± 0.4 mm. broad.. Seeds reddish brown, broadly elliptic or oblong in outline, 1.5–2.5 mm. long, 1.0–1.5 mm. broad, minutely rugose.
Soft herbs up to 30 cm high with erect or decumbent stems from a perennial root, Stems rooting at the lower nodes, glabrous or hispid, internodes long. Leaves alternate, petiolate, the petioles 3-9 cm long, channelled, clasping at the base but not auriculate, glabrous or hispidulous; leaflets 3, petiolulate, membranous, crenate or crenate-dentate, each crenation with a mucronulate nerve-ending, margins ciliolate, both surfaces glabrous, or the lower surface strigillose or both surfaces stigillose, 3-5-nerved from near or from the base, 3-5.5 cm long, 2-4 cm broad; lateral leaflets obliquely ovate, acute or acuminate not always opposite each other; terminal leaflet oblong-ovate or narrowly ovate, cordate or broad at the base, acute or acuminate. Racemes few-flowered; rhachis 2-10 cm long. Pedicels in fruit 0.5-1.5 cm long, stout. Sepals 2-3 mm long, 1-1.3 mm broad, oblong, rounded, erect, not saccate, thin, green or tinged purple. Petals 3.5-4.5 mm long, 2-2.3 mm broad, broadly obovate to oblong-obovate, rounded, clawed. Stamens 6; filaments 2-2.5 mm and 2.5-3 mm long; anthers 0.8-1.1 mm long. Siliquae (2-)3-4.5 cm long, 1.8-2.2 mm broad linear, erect; valves obscurely 1-nerved smooth; style and stigma together 1-1.5 mm long, rarely to 5.5 mm, slender, the style very slightly swollen, the stigma disc-like. Seeds mostly 14-16, 2-2.5 x 1.2-1.3 mm, oblong, brown.
Perennial herb, up to 0.3 m high. Stems erect or decumbent; rooting at nodes, internodes long; Leaves alternate, petiolate, trifoliolate; leaflets petiolulate, blade of lateral leaflets obliquely ovate, terminal leaflet oblong-ovate or narrowly ovate, base cordate, apices acute or acuminate, ciliolate, crenate or crenate-dentate, each crenation with a mucronulate vein-ending, surfaces glabrous or strigillose. Flowers: in few-flowered racemes; petals 3.5-4.5 mm long, obovate, apex rounded or emarginate, clawed, white; Oct.-Mar. Fruit with pedicels stout; siliquae 30-45 x 1.8-2.2 mm, smooth.
Perennial herb, 0.15-0.30 m high, erect or decumbent, long internodes. Stems root at lower nodes, glabrous or hispid. Leaves alternate, petiolate, leaflets 3, petiolulate, membranous, crenate or crenate-dentate, each crenation with a mucronulate nerve-ending, both surfaces glabrous or strigulose or only lower surface strigulose, margins ciliolate. Inflorescence a raceme. Sepals erect, oblong, thin, green or tinged purple. Petals broadly obovate to oblong-obovate, clawed. Stamens 6. Fruit a linear siliqua, valves 1-nerved, smooth. Seeds oblong, brown.
Leaves trifoliolate, petiolate, petioles slender, up to 5–10 cm. long, glabrous or sparsely pubescent, leaflets up to 4 x 3 cm., ovate to ovate-lanceolate, apex acute to rounded, margins crenate-dentate, base truncate, rounded or slightly cordate, sparsely pubescent or strigulose.
Soft perennial to 30 cm, sometimes coarsely hairy, rooting at lower nodes. Leaves trifoliolate, toothed. Flowers white. Fruits erect, linear.
Flowers white, greenish-white or greenish-yellow, pedicellate, pedicels up to 4 mm. long, in corymbose racemes.
Silique 25–45 x 1.5–2 mm., straight, linear, flattened, tapering gradually, with pedicel 3–12 mm. long.
Slender perennial herb up to 40–60 cm. tall, stems often rooting at the nodes, sparsely pubescent.
A soft herb, up to 300 mm tall. Stems erect or decumbent. Leaves trifoliate. Flowers white.
Seeds 1.8–2 x 1.2–1.5 mm., flattened-ellipsoid, brownish.
Petals 4, 5 x 1.5 mm., narrowly oblanceolate or cuneate.
Sepals 2–3 x 1–1.5 mm., suberect, obovate-oblong.
A weak herb, 1–2 ft. high
White flowers.
Stamens 6.
Life form perennial
Growth form herb
Growth support free-standing
Foliage retention -
Sexuality hermaphrodite
Pollination -
Spread -
Mature width (meter) -
Mature height (meter) 0.3 - 0.45
Root system rhizome
Rooting depth (meter) -
Root diameter (meter) -
Flower color
Blooming months -
Fruit color -
Fruiting months -
Nitrogen fixer -
Photosynthetic pathway c3

Environment

Undergrowth in montane forests, often also in clearings, along roads and paths. Usually in damp, shady places; 200-2400 m.
Light -
Soil humidity -
Soil texture 6-7
Soil acidity -
Soil nutriment -
Hardiness (USDA) 9-12

Usage

Uses -
Edible -
Therapeutic use -
Human toxicity -
Animal toxicity -

Cultivation

Mode -
Germination duration (days) -
Germination temperacture (C°) -
Germination luminosity -
Germination treatment -
Minimum temperature (C°) -
Optimum temperature (C°) -
Size -
Vigor -
Productivity -

Distribution

Cardamine africana world distribution map, present in American Samoa, Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba, Comoros, Ethiopia, Indonesia, India, Sri Lanka, Madagascar, Papua New Guinea, Réunion, Sao Tome and Principe, and South Africa

Identifiers

LSID urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:280122-1
WFO ID wfo-0000586418
COL ID R48Z
BDTFX ID -
INPN ID 706005
Wikipedia (EN)
Wikipedia (FR)

Synonyms

Cardamine africana Cardamine allevia Cardamine borbonica Cardamine burchellii Cardamine holtziana Cardamine javanica Cardamine porphyrophylla Cardamine wightiana Pteroneurum javanicum Cardamine rubifolia Cardamine ternata Cardamine africana var. allevia Cardamine africana var. arabica Cardamine borbonica var. allevia Cardamine borbonica var. arabica Cardamine hirsuta var. major Cardamine laxa var. pumila Cardamine ovata var. unijuga Cardamine anteniquana Cardamine africana subsp. africana