Urtica hyperborea Jacquem. ex Wedd.

Species

Angiosperms > Rosales > Urticaceae > Urtica

Characteristics

Herbs perennial, caespitose, monoecious or dioecious. Rhizomes woody, thick. Stems pale brownish and purplish, simple or branched, cylindric basally, somewhat 4-angled apically, 10-50 cm tall, sparsely puberulent and densely armed with stinging hairs; internodes compact. Stipules free, reflexed, oblong or oblong-ovate, 2-4 mm, ciliate; petiole 0.2-0.5(-1.6) cm, puberulent, with stinging hairs; leaf blade green-blue when dry, ovate or cordate, 1.5-7 × 1-5 cm, 3(-5)-veined, lateral basal veins arcuate, reaching distal margin and anastomosing, impressed adaxially, prominent abaxially, both surfaces with stinging and puberulent hairs, base cordate, margin 6-11-dentate, apex acute or short acuminate; cystoliths punctiform, conspicuous adaxially. Inflorescences unisexual, male ones in proximal axils, short spicate or in clusters, 1-2.5 cm. Male flowers long pedicellate, in bud ca. 1.3 mm, perianth lobes connate 1/2 of length, hirtellous. Female flowers: perianth lobes connate at base, membranous, unequal, dorsal-ventral lobes much larger, suborbicular, 3-5 mm, 2 times as long as achene, setulose and sometimes with 1 or 2 stinging hairs on ribs, lateral lobes ovate, 8-10 times as short as dorsal ones. Achene pale gray, oblong-ovoid, compressed, ca. 2 mm, smooth, invested by persistent perianth lobes. Fl. Jun-Jul, fr. Aug-Sep.
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A densely tufted herb. It has stout stems and grows 15-35 cm high. It keeps growing from year to year. The leaves are small and crowded and have coarse teeth. The leaves are 3-5 cm long and oval or heart shaped. The leaves have stinging hairs. The flowers are green and in dense clusters in the axils of leaves.
Life form perennial
Growth form herb
Growth support free-standing
Foliage retention deciduous
Sexuality dioecy
Pollination anemogamy
Spread -
Mature width (meter) -
Mature height (meter) 0.3 - 0.33
Root system rhizome
Rooting depth (meter) -
Root diameter (meter) -
Flower color
Blooming months
JanFebMar
AprMayJun
JulAugSep
OctNovDec
Fruit color -
Fruiting months
JanFebMar
AprMayJun
JulAugSep
OctNovDec
Nitrogen fixer -
Photosynthetic pathway -

Environment

Stony high altitude steppes, 4100-5100 metres. Alpine meadows, thickets and crevices at elevations of 3000-5200 metres in western China.
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It is a temperate plant. It grows at higher altitudes. In the Himalayas it grows between 4,100-5,100 m altitude.
Light 7-9
Soil humidity 4-6
Soil texture 1-6
Soil acidity 3-7
Soil nutriment -
Hardiness (USDA) 6-11

Usage

The young leaves are cooked and eaten. They are cooked, squeezed and fried to make vegetables. They are also used in soups.
Uses dye essential oil fiber medicinal wood
Edible leaves shoots
Therapeutic use -
Human toxicity -
Animal toxicity -

Cultivation

Can be grown by seedlings.
Mode seedlings
Germination duration (days) -
Germination temperacture (C°) -
Germination luminosity -
Germination treatment -
Minimum temperature (C°) -
Optimum temperature (C°) -
Size -
Vigor -
Productivity -

Images

Urtica hyperborea unspecified picture

Distribution

Urtica hyperborea world distribution map, present in China, India, Nepal, and Pakistan

Identifiers

LSID urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:857644-1
WFO ID wfo-0001224082
COL ID 7F27X
BDTFX ID -
INPN ID -
Wikipedia (EN)
Wikipedia (FR)

Synonyms

Urtica hyperborea