|
Prunus Microcarpa
''Prunus microcarpa'', the small-fruited cherry, is a species of ''Prunus'' native to Western Asia and the Caucasus. Description ''Prunus microcarpa'' is a deciduous bushy shrub with rigid branchlets. Its glabrous leaves are ovate to elliptic. ''Prunus microcarpa'' produces white to pale pink hermaphrodite flowers in April. The flowers are solitary or in pairs and are 1 cm across. Its 1 cm-long fruit is ovoid and turns yellow to orange, red or black when ripe and may be toxic if consumed excessively. Uses The shrub's fruit can be used to obtain a dark grey to green dye, and a green dye can be obtained from its leaves. Plants in the ''Prunus'' species contain amygdalin and prunasin, substances which break down in water to produce hydrogen cyanide. Hydrogen cyanide is a colorless, extremely poisonous chemical that gives almonds their characteristic flavour. These substances are found mainly in the leaves and seed and can be detected by the bitter taste. It is usually pr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Carl Anton Von Meyer
Carl Anton von Meyer (in Russian: Карл Анто́нович фон Ме́йер, ''Karl Antonovich von Meyer'') (1 April 1795 – 24 February 1855) was a German, Russified botanist and explorer. Meyer was born in Vitebsk. He received his education at the University of Dorpat (1813-14) as a student of Karl Friedrich von Ledebour, with whom he later embarked on a scientific journey to the Crimea (1818). In 1826, with Ledebour and Alexander G. von Bunge, he took part in an expedition to the Altay Mountains and the Kirghiz Steppe ( Kazakhstan). Plants collected on the trip formed the basis of "Flora Altaica" (four volumes issued between 1829 and 1833).JSTOR Global Plants JSTOR Global Plants] (biography) In 1835 he began work as a botanist for the [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Prunus
''Prunus'' is a genus of trees and shrubs, which includes (among many others) the fruits plums, cherries, peaches, nectarines, apricots, and almonds. Native to the North American temperate regions, the neotropics of South America, and the paleotropics of Asia and Africa, 430 different species are classified under ''Prunus''. Many members of the genus are widely cultivated for their fruit and for decorative purposes. ''Prunus'' fruit are drupes, or stone fruits. The fleshy mesocarp surrounding the endocarp is edible while the endocarp itself forms a hard, inedible shell called the pyrena ("stone" or "pit"). This shell encloses the seed (or "kernel") which is edible in many species (such as almonds) but poisonous in others (such as apricots). Besides being eaten off the hand, most ''Prunus'' fruit are also commonly used in processing, such as jam production, canning, drying, and seeds for roasting. Botany Members of the genus can be deciduous or evergreen. A few species have ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Western Asia
Western Asia, West Asia, or Southwest Asia, is the westernmost subregion of the larger geographical region of Asia, as defined by some academics, UN bodies and other institutions. It is almost entirely a part of the Middle East, and includes Anatolia, the Arabian Peninsula, Iran, Mesopotamia, the Armenian Highlands, the Levant, the island of Cyprus, the Sinai Peninsula, and partly the Caucasus Region ( Transcaucasia). The region is considered to be separated from Africa by the Isthmus of Suez in Egypt, and separated from Europe by the waterways of the Turkish Straits and the watershed of the Greater Caucasus. Central Asia lies to its northeast, while South Asia lies to its east. Twelve seas surround the region (clockwise): the Aegean Sea, the Sea of Marmara, the Black Sea, the Caspian Sea, the Persian Gulf, the Gulf of Oman, the Arabian Sea, the Gulf of Aden, the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aqaba, the Gulf of Suez, and the Mediterranean Sea. Western Asia covers an are ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Caucasus
The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, mainly comprising Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia (country), Georgia, and parts of Southern Russia. The Caucasus Mountains, including the Greater Caucasus range, have historically been considered as a natural barrier between Eastern Europe and Western Asia. Mount Elbrus in Russia, Europe's highest mountain, is situated in the Western Caucasus. On the southern side, the Lesser Caucasus includes the Javakheti Plateau and the Armenian highlands, part of which is in Turkey. The Caucasus is divided into the North Caucasus and South Caucasus, although the Western Caucasus also exists as a distinct geographic space within the North Caucasus. The Greater Caucasus mountain range in the north is mostly shared by Russia and Georgia as well as the northernmost parts of Azerbaijan. The Lesser Caucasus mountain range in the south is occupied by several independent states, mostly by Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Ge ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Leaf Shape
The following is a list of terms which are used to describe leaf morphology in the description and taxonomy of plants. Leaves may be simple (a single leaf blade or lamina) or compound (with several leaflets). The edge of the leaf may be regular or irregular, may be smooth or bearing hair, bristles or spines. For more terms describing other aspects of leaves besides their overall morphology see the leaf article. The terms listed here all are supported by technical and professional usage, but they cannot be represented as mandatory or undebatable; readers must use their judgement. Authors often use terms arbitrarily, or coin them to taste, possibly in ignorance of established terms, and it is not always clear whether because of ignorance, or personal preference, or because usages change with time or context, or because of variation between specimens, even specimens from the same plant. For example, whether to call leaves on the same tree "acuminate", "lanceolate", or "linear" coul ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Amygdalin
Amygdalin (from Ancient Greek: ' "almond") is a naturally occurring chemical compound found in many plants, most notably in the seeds (kernels) of apricots, bitter almonds, apples, peaches, cherries, and plums. Amygdalin is classified as a cyanogenic glycoside because each amygdalin molecule includes a nitrile group, which can be released as the toxic cyanide anion by the action of a beta-glucosidase. Eating amygdalin will cause it to release cyanide in the human body, and may lead to cyanide poisoning. Since the early 1950s, both amygdalin and a chemical derivative named ''laetrile'' have been promoted as alternative cancer treatments, often under the misnomer vitamin B17 (neither amygdalin nor laetrile is a vitamin). Scientific study has found them to not only be clinically ineffective in treating cancer, but also potentially toxic or lethal when taken by mouth due to cyanide poisoning. The promotion of laetrile to treat cancer has been described in the medical literatur ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Prunasin
(''R'')-prunasin is a cyanogenic glycoside related to amygdalin. Chemically, it is the glucoside of (''R'')-mandelonitrile. Natural occurrences Prunasin is found in species in the genus ''Prunus'' such as '' Prunus japonica'' or '' P. maximowiczii'' and in bitter almonds. It is also found in leaves and stems of '' Olinia ventosa'', '' O. radiata'', '' O. emarginata'' and '' O. rochetiana'' and in '' Acacia greggii''. It is a biosynthetic precursor of and intermediate in the biosynthesis of amygdalin, the chemical compound responsible for the taste of bitter almond. It is also found in dandelion coffee, a coffee substitute. Sambunigrin Sambunigrin, a diastereomer of prunasin derived from (''S'')-mandelonitrile instead of it the (''R'')-isomer, has been isolated from leaves of the elder tree ('' Sambucus nigra''). Sambunigrin is present in the leaves and stems of elder at a 1:3 ratio of sambunigrin to prunasin, and 2:5 in the immature seed. It is not found in the root. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hydrogen Cyanide
Hydrogen cyanide, sometimes called prussic acid, is a chemical compound with the formula HCN and structure . It is a colorless, extremely poisonous, and flammable liquid that boils slightly above room temperature, at . HCN is produced on an industrial scale and is a highly valued precursor to many chemical compounds ranging from polymers to pharmaceuticals. Large-scale applications are for the production of potassium cyanide and adiponitrile, used in mining and plastics, respectively. It is more toxic than solid cyanide compounds due to its volatile nature. Structure and general properties Hydrogen cyanide is a linear molecule, with a triple bond between carbon and nitrogen. The tautomer of HCN is HNC, hydrogen isocyanide. Hydrogen cyanide is weakly acidic with a p''K''a of 9.2. It partially ionizes in water solution to give the cyanide anion, CN−. A solution of hydrogen cyanide in water, represented as HCN, is called ''hydrocyanic acid''. The salts of the cyan ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Honey Fungus
''Armillaria'' is a genus of fungi that includes the '' A. mellea'' species known as honey fungi that live on trees and woody shrubs. It includes about 10 species formerly categorized summarily as ''A. mellea''. ''Armillarias'' are long-lived and form the largest living fungi in the world. The largest known organism (of the species ''Armillaria ostoyae'') covers more than in Oregon's Malheur National Forest and is estimated to be 2,500 years old. Some species of ''Armillaria'' display bioluminescence, resulting in foxfire. ''Armillaria'' can be a destructive forest pathogen. It causes "white rot" root disease (see Plant pathology section) of forests, which distinguishes it from ''Tricholoma'', a mycorrhizal (non-parasitic) genus. Because ''Armillaria'' is a facultative saprophyte, it also feeds on dead plant material, allowing it to kill its host, unlike parasites that must moderate their growth to avoid host death. Description The basidiocarp (reproductive stru ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Flora Of Afghanistan
Flora (: floras or florae) is all the plant life present in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring ( indigenous) native plants. The corresponding term for animals is ''fauna'', and for fungi, it is '' funga''. Sometimes bacteria and fungi are also referred to as flora as in the terms '' gut flora'' or ''skin flora''. Etymology The word "flora" comes from the Latin name of Flora, the goddess of plants, flowers, and fertility in Roman mythology. The technical term "flora" is then derived from a metonymy of this goddess at the end of the sixteenth century. It was first used in poetry to denote the natural vegetation of an area, but soon also assumed the meaning of a work cataloguing such vegetation. Moreover, "Flora" was used to refer to the flowers of an artificial garden in the seventeenth century. The distinction between vegetation (the general appearance of a community) and flora (the taxonomic composition of a community) was first made by Jules Thur ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Flora Of Georgia (country)
Georgia (, ; ) is a transcontinental country at the intersection of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is part of the Caucasus region, bounded by the Black Sea to the west, by Russia to Georgia–Russia border, the north and northeast, by Turkey to Georgia–Turkey border, the southwest, by Armenia to Armenia–Georgia border, the south, and by Azerbaijan to Azerbaijan–Georgia border, the southeast. The country covers an area of , and has a population of 3.7 million people. Tbilisi is its capital as well as List of cities and towns in Georgia (country), its largest city, home to roughly a third of the Demographics of Georgia (country), Georgian population. During the classical antiquity, classical era, several independent kingdoms became established in what is now Georgia, such as Colchis and Kingdom of Iberia, Iberia. In the early 4th century, Georgians, ethnic Georgians officially Christianization of Iberia, adopted Christianity, which contributed to the Georgian Orthod ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Flora Of Iran
Flora (: floras or florae) is all the plant life present in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring ( indigenous) native plants. The corresponding term for animals is ''fauna'', and for fungi, it is '' funga''. Sometimes bacteria and fungi are also referred to as flora as in the terms ''gut flora'' or ''skin flora''. Etymology The word "flora" comes from the Latin name of Flora, the goddess of plants, flowers, and fertility in Roman mythology. The technical term "flora" is then derived from a metonymy of this goddess at the end of the sixteenth century. It was first used in poetry to denote the natural vegetation of an area, but soon also assumed the meaning of a work cataloguing such vegetation. Moreover, "Flora" was used to refer to the flowers of an artificial garden in the seventeenth century. The distinction between vegetation (the general appearance of a community) and flora (the taxonomic composition of a community) was first made by Jules Thurma ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
.jpg "Click for more on -> Prunus")
