''Orobanche minor'', the hellroot, common broomrape, lesser broomrape, small broomrape, broomrape minor or clover broomrape, is a holoparasitic

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (). The term angiosperm is derived from the Ancient Greek, Greek words (; 'container, vessel') and (; 'seed'), meaning that the seeds are enclosed with ...

belonging to the family

Orobanchaceae Orobanchaceae, the broomrapes, is a family (biology), family of mostly parasitic plants of the order (biology), order Lamiales, with about 90 genus, genera and more than 2000 species. Many of these genera (e.g., ''Pedicularis'', ''Rhinanthus'', ...

. It is one of about 150 non-photosynthetic plants 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 ...

'' that

parasitize 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 ento ...

autotroph An autotroph is an organism that can convert Abiotic component, abiotic sources of energy into energy stored in organic compounds, which can be used by Heterotroph, other organisms. Autotrophs produce complex organic compounds (such as carbohy ...

ic plants.

Characteristics and growth requirements

''Orobanche minor'' grows to and is a perennial. The flowers are

hermaphrodite A hermaphrodite () is a sexually reproducing organism that produces both male and female gametes. Animal species in which individuals are either male or female are gonochoric, which is the opposite of hermaphroditic. The individuals of many ...

. Common broomrape grows in a wide variety of soils, namely moist, light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils that are acid, neutral or basic. It can grow in semi-shade or in full sunlight. The species appears in a wide range of colours from red-brown, yellow-brown to purple. Yellow specimens are also not uncommon and it is this extreme variability that makes identification on the basis of size or colour uncertain. It is parasitic on various members of the pea (

Fabaceae Fabaceae () or Leguminosae,International Code of Nomen ...

) and daisy (

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 ...

) families. Although widespread, its appearance is sporadic; despite this, it can occur in vast colonies from time to time. The main flowering season in the northern hemisphere is from May until the end of August and from August to January in the southern hemisphere. The species has efficient seed dispersal and is largely inbreeding so that populations preferentially parasitizing a particular species which has its own clear ecological preferences may become effectively isolated and eventually may produce distinct taxa. The plants are attached to their host by means of

haustoria In botany and mycology, a haustorium (plural haustoria) is a rootlike structure that grows into or around another structure to absorb water or nutrients. For example, in mistletoe or members of the broomrape family, the structure penetrates th ...

, which transfer nutrients from the host to the parasite. Only the hemiparasitic species possess an additional extensive root system. The root system is reduced as its function is mainly anchorage of the plant.

Distribution

Common broomrape is one of the most widespread species, and is native to

Southern Europe Southern Europe is also known as Mediterranean Europe, as its geography is marked by the Mediterranean Sea. Definitions of southern Europe include some or all of these countries and regions: Albania, Andorra, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, C ...

, but has been widely introduced elsewhere, for example in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. In

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

it is the only species of the genus present where it is regarded as an agricultural pest. In the United Kingdom it is widely recorded in southern England, less common in Wales, rarely recorded in lowland Scotland and absent from the Highlands and outer islands.

Taxonomy

Phylogenetic analyses have placed this species in the taxonomically difficult ''Minores'' species complex. Four infraspecific taxa of Common broomrape are currently recognised in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

: ''O. minor'' var. ''minor'', ''O. minor'' var. ''flava'', ''O. minor'' var. ''compositarum'' and ''O. minor'' subsp. ''maritima''. Chromosome No.: 2n = 38. The genetic structure of populations of ''O. minor'' are under investigation using molecular markers and DNA sequencing to help resolve the taxonomic and nomenclatural problems that have historically been linked with this species.BSBI
Retrieved: 2011-08-07

Hosts and speciation

The common broomrape is highly generalist in its host range, and can infect hundreds of species in families from the

Ranunculaceae Ranunculaceae (, buttercup or crowfoot family; Latin "little frog", from "frog") is a family (biology), family of over 2,000 known species of flowering plants in 43 genera, distributed worldwide. The largest genera are ''Ranunculus'' (600 spec ...

to the

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

(=Gramineae) but with a clear preference for the

Fabaceae Fabaceae () or Leguminosae,International Code of Nomen ...

(=Leguminosae) and

(=Compositae). However races occurring on different species of host are genetically divergent and physiologically adapted to their local hosts, and may therefore be in a state of incipient

speciation Speciation is the evolutionary process by which populations evolve to become distinct species. The biologist Orator F. Cook coined the term in 1906 for cladogenesis, the splitting of lineages, as opposed to anagenesis, phyletic evolution within ...

. Urgent conservation efforts are required as the survival of some intraspecific taxa is very uncertain.

References

External links

Video of common broomrape
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