''Distichlis palmeri'' is a species of

perennial In horticulture, the term perennial ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the year") is used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. It has thus been defined as a plant that lives more than 2 years. The term is also ...

halophytic

grass Poaceae ( ), also called Gramineae ( ), is a large and nearly ubiquitous family (biology), family of monocotyledonous flowering plants commonly known as grasses. It includes the cereal grasses, bamboos, the grasses of natural grassland and spe ...

commonly known as nipa or Palmer saltgrass. It is a saltwater marsh grass

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

to the tidal marshes of the northern

Gulf of California The Gulf of California (), also known as the Sea of Cortés (''Mar de Cortés'') or Sea of Cortez, or less commonly as the Vermilion Sea (''Mar Vermejo''), is a marginal sea of the Pacific Ocean that separates the Baja California peninsula from ...

in Mexico.

Description

''Distichlis palmeri'' is an

obligate {{wiktionary, obligate As an adjective, obligate means "by necessity" (antonym '' facultative'') and is used mainly in biology in phrases such as: * Obligate aerobe, an organism that cannot survive without oxygen * Obligate anaerobe, an organism ...

emergent (it has

aerenchyma Aerenchyma or aeriferous parenchyma or lacunae, is a modification of the parenchyma to form a spongy tissue that creates spaces or air channels in the leaves, stems and roots of some plants, which allows exchange of gases between the shoot and ...

)

rhizomatous In botany and dendrology, a rhizome ( ) is a modified subterranean plant stem that sends out roots and shoots from its nodes. Rhizomes are also called creeping rootstalks or just rootstalks. Rhizomes develop from axillary buds and grow hori ...

dioecious Dioecy ( ; ; adj. dioecious, ) is a characteristic of certain species that have distinct unisexual individuals, each producing either male or female gametes, either directly (in animals) or indirectly (in seed plants). Dioecious reproduction is ...

halophytic C4 grass. Culms (stalks) are generally rigid and upright to about 60 cm (2 feet) and have short internodes. Longer culms become recumbent (lay down) developing young vertical culms from the nodes. These young culms may root. Acicular to linear leaves are upright and positioned alternate along the culm at nodes. Leaves excrete salts through specialized

salt gland The salt gland is an organ (anatomy), organ for excreting excess salt (chemistry), salts. It is found in the cartilaginous fishes subclass elasmobranchii (sharks, rays, and skates), seabirds, and some reptiles. Salt glands can be found in the r ...

s that are a component of ''D. palmeri'' leaf anatomy. These excreted surface salts are wicked away by breezes.

Anemophilous Anemophily or wind pollination is a form of pollination whereby pollen is distributed by wind. Almost all gymnosperms are anemophilous, as are many plants in the order Poales, including grasses, sedges, and rushes. Other common anemophilous pla ...

flowers emerge late winter. At

anthesis Anthesis is the period during which a flower is fully open and functional. It may also refer to the onset of that period. The onset of anthesis is spectacular in some species. In ''Banksia'' species, for example, anthesis involves the extension ...

, males liberate light chartreuse colored pollen in breezes. Female flowers are

panicle In botany, a panicle is a much-branched inflorescence. (softcover ). Some authors distinguish it from a compound spike inflorescence, by requiring that the flowers (and fruit) be pedicellate (having a single stem per flower). The branches of a p ...

s of alternate

spikelet A spikelet, in botany, describes the typical arrangement of the inflorescences of grasses, sedges and some other monocots. Each spikelet has one or more florets. The spikelets are further grouped into panicles or spikes. The part of the sp ...

s that present lavender colored styles and stigmas. Kernels (

seed In botany, a seed is a plant structure containing an embryo and stored nutrients in a protective coat called a ''testa''. More generally, the term "seed" means anything that can be Sowing, sown, which may include seed and husk or tuber. Seeds ...

s) are mature in early spring. Each panicle produces 20-30 mature caryopses.

Distribution and habitat

''Distichlis palmeri'' is endemic to the tidal marshes of

Baja California Baja California, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Baja California, is a state in Mexico. It is the northwesternmost of the 32 federal entities of Mexico. Before becoming a state in 1952, the area was known as the North Territory of B ...

and

Sonora Sonora (), officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sonora (), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the Administrative divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. The state is divided into Municipalities of Sonora, 72 ...

in the northern Gulf of California. In Baja California, this species occurs from the

Colorado River Delta The Colorado River Delta is the region where the Colorado River once flowed into the Gulf of California (also known as the Sea of Cortez) in eastern Mexicali Municipality in the north of the state of Baja California, in northwestern Mexico. The ...

south to the Bahía de los Angeles and

Isla Ángel de la Guarda Isla Ángel de la Guarda, (Guardian Angel Island) also called Archangel Island, is a large uninhabited island in the Gulf of California (Sea of Cortez) east of Bahía de los Ángeles in northwestern Mexico, separated from the Baja Peninsula, Baja ...

Ecology

''D. palmeri'' is not drought tolerant. It does withstand surface drying between supra tidal events because roots extend downward to more than 1 meter (3 feet) where coastal substrata is still moist. Insects of the

grasshopper Grasshoppers are a group of insects belonging to the suborder Caelifera. They are amongst what are possibly the most ancient living groups of chewing herbivorous insects, dating back to the early Triassic around 250 million years ago. Grassh ...

family visit the plant. When maintained in a greenhouse, it is susceptible to

aphid Aphids are small sap-sucking insects in the Taxonomic rank, family Aphididae. Common names include greenfly and blackfly, although individuals within a species can vary widely in color. The group includes the fluffy white Eriosomatinae, woolly ...

infestation.

Uses

Kernels are similar to those of

farro Farro is a grain of any of three species of wheat, namely einkorn, emmer, or spelt, sold dried and cooked in water until soft. It is used as a side dish and added to salads, soups and stews. Etymology The English word is borrowed direct ...

in color and size. Kernels of ''Distichlis palmeri'' have an indigenous history as a wild harvest grain (Nipa) consumed by the Cocopah. Nipa grain has size, nutritional value and flavor qualities similar to other cropped

grain A grain is a small, hard, dry fruit (caryopsis) – with or without an attached husk, hull layer – harvested for human or animal consumption. A grain crop is a grain-producing plant. The two main types of commercial grain crops are cereals and ...

s. In the last four decades, Nipa grain production through saline agriculture (agriculture that uses saline resources to farm halophytic

cash crop A cash crop, also called profit crop, is an Agriculture, agricultural crop which is grown to sell for profit. It is typically purchased by parties separate from a farm. The term is used to differentiate a marketed crop from a staple crop ("subsi ...

s) of ''D. palmeri'' has been the subject of domestication studies. In addition to research studies working to domesticate ''D. palmeri'', the species has been used to manage farm drainage and has been proposed as a constructive use plant in remediation of saline and biosaline wastewaters and land. ''Distichlis palmeri'' can grow in open hot full sun on saline irrigation in

subtropic The subtropical zones or subtropics are geographical and climate zones immediately to the north and south of the tropics. Geographically part of the temperate zones of both hemispheres, they cover the middle latitudes from to approximately 3 ...

zones; hence, it can be cropped along warming and rising coastlines and is an active candidate for (bio)saline agriculture and cash crop development of Nipa grain.

References

External links

Herbarium photos at SERNEC

Sonoran Desert map at Desert Museum
{{Taxonbar, from=Q5282938 palmeri Chloridoideae Halophytes Cereals Grasses of Mexico Flora of the Sonoran Deserts Flora of Northwestern Mexico Plants used in Native American cuisine Plants described in 1889 Taxa named by George Vasey