Blitum californicum
Blitum californicum | |
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Scientific classification ![]() | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Order: | Caryophyllales |
Family: | Amaranthaceae |
Genus: | Blitum |
Species: | B. californicum
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Binomial name | |
Blitum californicum | |
Synonyms | |
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Blitum californicum[1] (syn. Chenopodium californicum) is a species of flowering plant in the amaranth family known by the common names California goosefoot and (ambiguously) "Indian lettuce".
It is native to California and Baja California where it can be found below 2,000 metres (6,600 ft) in open areas in a number of habitat types, such as grassland, chaparral, desert, and montane.[2]
Description
[edit]This is a perennial herb producing a number of decumbent to erect stems which approach a meter in maximum height when growing upright. It grows from a thick, fleshy caudex. When there are many stems the plant may form a clump or mat. The leaves grow on long petioles and are triangular or arrowhead-shaped and up to about 10 centimeters long. The edges are deeply and sharply toothed.[3]
The inflorescences are spherical clusters dotted along an inflorescence-like spike. Each dense cluster contains several rounded flowers, with each flower a series of flat lobes covering the developing fruit. The fruit is a reddish utricle layered around the surface of the seed.
Uses
[edit]California goosefoot was used for a variety of purposes by Native Americans including use as a medicine and a source of soap, in addition to the use of the seeds for flour and the leaves and shoots as a cooked vegetable.[4]
References
[edit]- ^ Susy Fuentes-Bazan, Pertti Uotila, Thomas Borsch: A novel phylogeny-based generic classification for Chenopodium sensu lato, and a tribal rearrangement of Chenopodioideae (Chenopodiaceae). In: Willdenowia 42, 2012, p. 18.
- ^ Wilken, Dieter H. (1993). "Chenopodium californicum". In Hickman, James C. (ed.). The Jepson Manual: Higher Plants of California. University and Jepson Herbaria.
- ^ USDA, NRCS (n.d.). "Blitum californicum". The PLANTS Database (plants.usda.gov). Greensboro, North Carolina: National Plant Data Team.
- ^ "Native American Ethnobotany". University of Michigan - Dearborn. Archived from the original (Database) on 6 December 2007. Retrieved 27 April 2011.
External links
[edit]![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/df/Wikispecies-logo.svg/34px-Wikispecies-logo.svg.png)
- Calflora
- Jepson eFlora, The Jepson Herbarium, University of California, Berkeley
- Chenopodium californicum in the CalPhotos photo database, University of California, Berkeley
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg/30px-Commons-logo.svg.png)
- Blitum
- Flora of California
- Flora of Baja California
- Flora of the California desert regions
- Flora of the Sierra Nevada (United States)
- Natural history of the California chaparral and woodlands
- Natural history of the Central Valley (California)
- Edible nuts and seeds
- Leaf vegetables
- Plants used in Native American cuisine
- Pre-Columbian California cuisine
- Taxa named by Sereno Watson
- Plants described in 1874
- Amaranthaceae stubs