''Barbarea'' (winter cress or yellow rocket) is a genus of about 22 species of
flowering plant
Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants th ...
s in the family
Brassicaceae
Brassicaceae () or (the older) Cruciferae () is a medium-sized and economically important family of flowering plants commonly known as the mustards, the crucifers, or the cabbage family. Most are herbaceous plants, while some are shrubs. The leav ...
, native to temperate regions of the
Northern Hemisphere, with the highest species diversity in southern
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...
and southwest
Asia
Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an are ...
. They are small herbaceous
biennial
Biennial means (an event) lasting for two years or occurring every two years. The related term biennium is used in reference to a period of two years.
In particular, it can refer to:
* Biennial plant, a plant which blooms in its second year and th ...
or
perennial plant
A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also wide ...
s with dark green, deeply lobed
leaves and yellow
flower
A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechani ...
s with four petals.
Selected species
*''
Barbarea australis
''Barbarea australis'', commonly known as native wintercress or riverbed wintercress, is a morphologically and ecologically typical ''Barbarea'' species with an unusual distribution: it is an endemic and threatened species from Tasmania. The le ...
''
*''
Barbarea balcana''
*''
Barbarea bosniaca''
*''
Barbarea bracteosa''
*''
Barbarea conferta''
*''
Barbarea hongii''
*''
Barbarea intermedia''
*''
Barbarea lepuznica''
*''
Barbarea longirostris''
*''
Barbarea orthoceras''
*''
Barbarea rupicola''
*''
Barbarea sicula''
*''
Barbarea stricta
''Barbarea stricta'', the small-flowered winter-cress, is a species of plant in the family Brassicaceae.
Description
''Barbarea stricta'' is a biennial or perennial herb up to 100 cm tall. Leaves are up to 7 cm long, pinnately lobed ...
''
*''
Barbarea taiwaniana''
*''
Barbarea verna
''Barbarea verna'' is a Biennial plant, biennial herb in the family Brassicaceae. Common names include land cress, American cress, bank cress, black wood cress, Belle Isle cress, Bermuda cress, early yellowrocket, early wintercress, scurvy cress ...
''
*''
Barbarea vulgaris
''Barbarea vulgaris'', also called wintercress (usual common name), or alternatively herb barbara, rocketcress, yellow rocketcress, winter rocket, yellow rocket, and wound rocket, is a biennial herb of the genus '' Barbarea'', belonging to the fa ...
''
Uses
They grow quickly into dandelion-like rosettes of edible,
cress-like foliage. ''Barbarea verna'', also known as upland cress, early winter cress, American cress, Belle Isle cress and scurvy grass, is used in salads or to add a nippy taste to mixed greens for cooking.
Chemical compounds
Winter cress contains different
glucosinolates
Glucosinolates are natural components of many pungent plants such as mustard, cabbage, and horseradish. The pungency of those plants is due to mustard oils produced from glucosinolates when the plant material is chewed, cut, or otherwise damaged. T ...
,
flavonoids
Flavonoids (or bioflavonoids; from the Latin word ''flavus'', meaning yellow, their color in nature) are a class of polyphenolic secondary metabolites found in plants, and thus commonly consumed in the diets of humans.
Chemically, flavonoids ...
and
saponins
Saponins (Latin "sapon", soap + "-in", one of), also selectively referred to as triterpene glycosides, are bitter-tasting usually toxic plant-derived organic chemicals that have a foamy quality when agitated in water. They are widely distributed ...
.
See also
*
Rocket (arugula)
References
External links
Flora Europaea: ''Barbarea''Flora of China: ''Barbarea''
*
Brassicaceae genera
Leaf vegetables
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