''Orobanche rapum-genistae'', the greater broomrape, is a plant species in the genus ''

Orobanche ''Orobanche'', commonly known as broomrape, is a genus of almost 200 species of small Parasitic plant, parasitic herbaceous plants, mostly native to the temperate climate, temperate Northern Hemisphere. It is the type genus of the Orobanchaceae ...

''. It is a

parasitic plant A parasitic plant is a plant that derives some or all of its nutritional requirements from another living plant. They make up about 1% of angiosperms and are found in almost every biome. All Parasite, parasitic plants develop a specialized organ ...

, native to Europe, growing on the roots of plants in the

bean A bean is the seed of some plants in the legume family (Fabaceae) used as a vegetable for human consumption or animal feed. The seeds are often preserved through drying (a ''pulse''), but fresh beans are also sold. Dried beans are traditi ...

family, usually

common broom ''Cytisus scoparius'' ( syn. ''Sarothamnus scoparius''), the common broom or Scotch broom, is a deciduous leguminous shrub native to western and central Europe. In Great Britain and Ireland, the standard name is broom; this name is also used for ...

or European gorse.

Description

The broomrapes are perennial,

parasitic Parasitism is a close relationship between species, where one organism, the parasite, lives (at least some of the time) on or inside another organism, the host, causing it some harm, and is adapted structurally to this way of life. The ent ...

plants which contain no

chlorophyll Chlorophyll is any of several related green pigments found in cyanobacteria and in the chloroplasts of algae and plants. Its name is derived from the Greek words (, "pale green") and (, "leaf"). Chlorophyll allows plants to absorb energy ...

and are totally dependent on other plants to provide their nutrients. The greater broomrape can grow to a height of with a honey-brown downy stem, persisting as a dark brown dead spike after flowering. The leaves are represented by small pointed scales, concentrated near the base of the stem, and there is a single bract, which is longer than the flower, below each flower. These have a corolla with two lips, four stamens and a curved-down style. The upper lip is hooded and the lower lip has three lobes, the central one being the largest. The fruits are egg-shaped and enclosed in the dead flowerhead, and the seeds are minute.

Distribution and habitat

The greater broomrape is a parasitic plant, growing on the roots of leguminous shrubs, and is to be found only where its

host A host is a person responsible for guests at an event or for providing hospitality during it. Host may also refer to: Places * Host, Pennsylvania, a village in Berks County * Host Island, in the Wilhelm Archipelago, Antarctica People * ...

plants are found; these are usually European gorse or

, but occasionally it grows on dyer's greenweed. It has a suboceanic, southern-temperate distribution, in Western Europe and North Africa; in France, the Netherlands and Belgium it is widespread, but in Germany it occurs mainly in the west, and in Switzerland in montane and sub-alpine settings. It occurs all over Italy, and is present in Corsica and Algeria. In Britain it is present in scattered locations, mostly in Wales, Southwest England and near the coast in South England. It was in decline in the 18th and early 19th centuries, but more recently has staged a revival. It grows in the

Great Casterton Road Banks Great Casterton Road Banks is a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest on the western outskirts of Stamford in Lincolnshire. It is managed by the Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust. This small site has calcareous grassland on Eastern Jurassic ...

, an

SSSI A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Great Britain, or an Area of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) in the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland, is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom and Isle ...

in Lincolnshire.

Chemistry

''Orobanche rapum-genistae'' contains

verbascoside Verbascoside is a polyphenol glycoside in which the phenylpropanoid caffeic acid and the phenylethanoid hydroxytyrosol form an ester and an ether bond respectively, to the rhamnose part of a disaccharide, namely β-(3′,4′-dihydroxyphenyl)ethyl ...

and orobanchoside. File:Orobanche rapum-genistae1.jpg, Flowers File:Orobanche rapum-genistae flor.jpg, Detail flower File:Orobanche rapum-genistae fruto.jpg, Detail fruit File:Orobanche rapum-genistae02.jpg File:Ginster-SommerwurzDetail.jpg

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q161785 rapum-genistae Plants described in 1799