5/31/2023 0 Comments Bermuda buttercup![]() ![]() In South Africa it is a traditional ingredient in dishes such as waterblommetjiebredie ('water flower stew'). The plant is palatable and in modest quantities is reasonably harmless to humans and livestock. New world Oxalis, such as Oxalis corniculata, apparently do not generally produce bulbs. In fact, Oxalis pes-caprae produces small bulbs copiously, whereas most other African species produce fewer, larger bulbs. These take the form of true bulbs in botanical terms, which is unusual among dicotyledons. Like most African Oxalis species, it produces adventitious subterranean propagules. In the non-native range the plants largely reproduce vegetatively and many populations have only one style length and the plants never produce seed. Native populations in South Africa are heterostylous, flowers of long-styled plants have a stigma held above the two ranks of stamens, mid-styled plants have the stigma in between the two ranks of stamens and short-styled plants have a stigma below both ranks of stamen. The Oxalis pes-caprae flower is actinomorphic, with a calyx composed of five free or slightly fused sepals, a sympetalous corolla composed of five fused petals, an androecium composed of ten free stamens in two ranks, and a compound pistil. Open and closed flowers in a bunch of Oxalis pes-caprae The specific epithet pes-caprae means 'goat's-foot', possibly in reference to the shape of the leaf. This sourness is caused by an exceptionally high content of oxalic acid. Oxalis pes-caprae is often called by the common name sourgrass due to its moderately sour flavor. ![]() ![]() Indigenous to South Africa, the plant has become a pest plant in different parts of the world that is difficult to eradicate because of how it propagates through underground bulbs. Some of the most common names for the plant reference its sour taste owing to oxalic acid present in its tissues. Oxalis cernua is a less common synonym for this species. Oxalis pes-caprae ( African wood-sorrel, Bermuda buttercup, Bermuda sorrel, buttercup oxalis, Cape sorrel, English weed, goat's-foot, sourgrass, soursob or soursop Afrikaans: suring ) is a species of tristylous yellow-flowering plant in the wood sorrel family Oxalidaceae. Acetosella ehrenbergii (Schltdl.) Kuntze.The Nature Conservancy Global Invasive Species Team. Soil Solarization for Gardens and Landscapes. Poisonous Plants of the United States and Canada. Factors affecting germination in greenhouse-produced seeds of Oxalis corniculata, a perennial weed. Weeds of California and Other Western States. The plant dies in the summer months.ĭiTomaso, J. The Bermuda Buttercup develops in the late winter and early spring. White bublets sometimes develop on the stem, and cultivates adjacently to an aboveground plant. Also, sometimes the three leaflets are spotted with purple dots. The Bermuda Buttercup grows from bulbs that come about in the fall months. With this shamrock like plant, there can only by three sides and on a rare occasion four. The average height for this plant is 14 inches and rarely goes beyond that. This flower blooms in between November and April. Death is a common result and many farmers like to kill of the Bermuda Buttercup from their farming ground. Oxalate poisoning is common for livestock to receive if there is a high consumption. "The genus name Oxalis is derived from the Greek word meaning “sour,” referring to the sour-tasting oxalic acid present throughout the plants." (DiTomaso 2007). This is a significant family, because it is very poisonous to those who intake the two plants too much. ![]() The Bermuda Buttercup is related to Oxalis corniculata ( blossom_top(aka).jpg). It is also used commonly as a plant for landscape architectures. The common ecology of a plant like this is found mostly in irrigated territories, vineyards, crop fields and urban areas. Interesting to know how it ended up in Berkeley. The Bermuda Buttercup is also a South African native, cultivated as a ornamental. It is a common weed in artichoke fields in Central CA. This shamrock like plant is a "a low growing perennial broadleaf plant" (Davis 2014) most commonly found in CA. Named the "Bermuda Buttercup" is also known as buttercup oxalis. I immediately snapped the photo, because it's origins were something I was curious about. Yellow on a gray day, it stuck out to me. I was walking on Bancroft when I saw this plant. Natural History Story of the Bermuda Buttercup ![]()
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