''Cicerbita'' is a
genus
Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...
of flowering plants in the family
Asteraceae
Asteraceae () is a large family (biology), family of flowering plants that consists of over 32,000 known species in over 1,900 genera within the Order (biology), order Asterales. The number of species in Asteraceae is rivaled only by the Orchi ...
, native to Asia and Europe.
Tropicos, ''Cicerbita'' Wallr.
/ref> They are known commonly as blue sow thistles.[Genus ''Cicerbita'' Wallr.]
Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN). The word ''Cicerbita'' is from the Italian, meaning "chickory-like", a comparison to '' Cichorium'', the chicory genus.[Scartezzini, F., et al. (2012)]
Domestication of alpine blue-sow-thistle (''Cicerbita alpina'' (L.) Wallr.): six year trial results.
''Genetic Resources and Crop Evolution'' 59(3) 465-71.
Description
''Cicerbita'' are usually perennial plant
In horticulture, the term perennial (''wikt:per-#Prefix, per-'' + ''wikt:-ennial#Suffix, -ennial'', "through the year") is used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annual plant, annuals and biennial plant, biennials. It has thus been d ...
s, often with rhizome
In botany and dendrology, a rhizome ( ) is a modified subterranean plant stem that sends out roots and Shoot (botany), shoots from its Node (botany), nodes. Rhizomes are also called creeping rootstalks or just rootstalks. Rhizomes develop from ...
s.[''Cicerbita''.]
Flora of China. Annual species are also known.[Bano, R. and M. Qaiser. (2010)]
The genus ''Cicerbita'' Wallr. (Cichoriae-Asteraceae) in Pakistan and Kashmir.
''Pakistan Journal of Botany'' 42, 35-56. The leaves are undivided or pinnate. The flower head has 5 to 30 florets in shades of blue or purple, or occasionally white[ or yellow.][ The ]achene
An achene (; ), also sometimes called akene and occasionally achenium or achenocarp, is a type of simple fruit, simple dry fruits, dry fruit produced by many species of flowering plants. Achenes are monocarpellate (formed from one carpel) and Dehi ...
is ribbed and has a pappus of bristles and hairs.[
]
Systematics
The plants of this genus were included in genus '' Lactuca'', the lettuce
Lettuce (''Lactuca sativa'') is an annual plant of the family Asteraceae mostly grown as a leaf vegetable. The leaves are most often used raw in Green salad, green salads, although lettuce is also seen in other kinds of food, such as sandwiche ...
s, until 1822,[Chu, S. (1991)]
On circumscription of the genus ''Cicerbita'' Wall., and two new genera of Compositae from Sino-Himalayan Region.
''Acta Phytotaxonomica Sinica'' 29(5) 394-417. when the first of them were separated based on the morphology of the fruits.[ The definition of the genus is still in debate and very unclear.
]
Species
The following species are recognised in the genus ''Cicerbita'':Cicerbita garrettii
''Cicerbita'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Asteraceae, native to Asia and Europe. They are known commonly as blue sow thistles. ''
*'' Cicerbita kovalevskiana''
*'' Cicerbita ladyginii''
*'' Cicerbita macrophylla''
*'' Cicerbita madatapensis''
*'' Cicerbita microcephala''
*'' Cicerbita mulgedioides''
*'' Cicerbita neglecta''
*'' Cicerbita nepalensis'' – Nepal
*'' Cicerbita nuristanica'' – Afghanistan
*'' Cicerbita olgae''
*'' Cicerbita pancicii''
*'' Cicerbita persica''
*'' Cicerbita picridiformis''
*'' Cicerbita plumieri''
*'' Cicerbita prenanthoides''
*'' Cicerbita putii''
*'' Cicerbita racemosa''
*'' Cicerbita rechingeriana''
*'' Cicerbita roborowskii''
*'' Cicerbita rosea''
*'' Cicerbita sonchifolia''
*'' Cicerbita songarica''
*'' Cicerbita subplumosa''
*'' Cicerbita thianschanica'' – Altay Republic, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Xinjiang
*'' Cicerbita variabilis''
*'' Cicerbita zeravschanica'' – Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan
*'' Cicerbita zhenduoi''
Uses
'' Cicerbita alpina'' is eaten as a vegetable
Vegetables are edible parts of plants that are consumed by humans or other animals as food. This original meaning is still commonly used, and is applied to plants collectively to refer to all edible plant matter, including edible flower, flo ...
in Italy, part of its native range. The young shoots are boiled and served in olive oil
Olive oil is a vegetable oil obtained by pressing whole olives (the fruit of ''Olea europaea'', a traditional Tree fruit, tree crop of the Mediterranean Basin) and extracting the oil.
It is commonly used in cooking for frying foods, as a cond ...
or tomato sauce
Tomato sauce (; ; ) can refer to many different sauces made primarily from tomatoes. In some countries the term refers to a sauce to be served as part of a dish, in others it is a condiment.
Tomatoes have a rich flavor, high water content, s ...
. They are considered a delicacy and can be had in restaurants.[Scartezzini, F., et al]
Domestication and field management trials of ''Cicerbita alpina'' (L.) Wallr.
In: First International Conference on Crop Wild Relative Conservation and Use. September 14–17, 2005. Agrigento, Sicily, Italy. pg. 14-17. The shoots in oil can be purchased in markets under the local name ''insalata dell'orso'' ("bear salad").[ The plant is collected from the wild and there is some concern that it may be threatened with ]overexploitation
Overexploitation, also called overharvesting or ecological overshoot, refers to harvesting a renewable resource to the point of diminishing returns. Continued overexploitation can lead to the destruction of the resource, as it will be unable to ...
, so local ordinances now limit wild collection in some areas. Field trials are underway to examine the possibility of cultivating the plant in agriculture.[
]
References
Cichorieae
Asteraceae genera
Taxa named by Karl Friedrich Wilhelm Wallroth
{{Cichorieae-stub