Chenopodium ficifolium

Smith

Fl. Brit. 1: 276. 1800.

Treatment appears in FNA Volume 4. Mentioned on page 294.

Stems erect, simple, 1.8–5.5 dm, glabrous to sparsely farinose. Leaves nonaromatic; petiole 0.3–4.5 cm, usually shorter than leaves; blade distinctly 3-lobed, narrowly ovate to elongate, (1.4–) 2.7–6.2 × (0.5–) 1.2–2.5 cm, base cuneate, margins toothed or nearly entire, with pair of basal lobes, apex obtuse to subacute, sparsely farinose. Inflorescences glomerules in terminal and lateral spikes and panicles, 11 cm; glomerules irregularly globose, in different stages of development, 1.7–1.9 mm diam.; bracts absent or leaflike. Flowers: perianth segments 5, connate at base into 0.3 mm tube; lobes ovate, 0.5–0.9 × 0.5–0.8 mm, apex acute, farinose, keeled, covering fruit at maturity; stamens 5; stigmas 2, 0.3 mm. Utricles depressed-ovoid; pericarp nonadherent, smooth. Seeds lenticular, 0.9–1 mm diam.; seed-coat black, honeycomb-pitted. 2n = 18.


Phenology: Fruiting early summer–fall.
Habitat: Disturbed nitrogen-rich habitats
Elevation: 0-200 m

Distribution

V4 559-distribution-map.gif

Introduced; Que., Fla., Mo., Oreg., Pa., native s, se Asia, occasionally in other parts of the world

Discussion

Chenopodium ficifolium has often been called C. serotinum Linnaeus. P. Aellen (1929b) and P. Uotila (1979b) have shown that the type of C. serotinum is a sterile Atriplex specimen (most probably A. tatarica Linnaeus) based on its Kranz-type leaf structure. Chenopodium blomianum Aellen [= C. ficifolium subsp. blomianum (Aellen) Aellen] was described from Sweden based on alien plants of presumably East Asian origin (P. Aellen 1928). According to Aellen, that subspecies occurs in southern and southeastern Asia and differs from C. ficifolium subsp. ficifolium in having leaves with spreading basal lobes almost perpendicular to the central lobe and seeds with shallow elongate depressions. All North American plants of C. ficifolium belong to subsp. ficifolium. In Europe C. ficifolium occasionally hybridizes with other species, including C. album (producing C. ×zahnii Murr) and C. suecicum (producing C. ×gruellii Aellen). No study has been made of such hybrids in North America.

Selected References

None.

Lower Taxa

None.

"narrower" is not a number."dm" is not declared as a valid unit of measurement for this property.

... more about "Chenopodium ficifolium"
dehiscent +  and indehiscent +
keeled +, acute +, obtuse +  and subacute +
Steven E. Clemants +  and Sergei L. Mosyakin +
slippery +
aromatic +
cuneate +
Chenopodium (sect. Undefined) ser. Favosa +
1.4 cm14 mm <br />0.014 m <br /> (2.7 cm27 mm <br />0.027 m <br />) +
0.5 cm5 mm <br />0.005 m <br /> (1.2 cm12 mm <br />0.012 m <br />) +
2.7 cm27 mm <br />0.027 m <br /> (6.2 cm62 mm <br />0.062 m <br />) +
narrowly ovate +  and elongate +
1.2 cm12 mm <br />0.012 m <br /> (2.5 cm25 mm <br />0.025 m <br />) +
persistent +  and deciduous +
reddish-brown +, black +, brown +  and green +
Que. +, Fla. +, Mo. +, Oreg. +, Pa. +, native s +, se Asia +  and occasionally in other parts of the world +
0-200 m +
hippocrepiform +  and annular +
symmetric +, or +  and uniseriate +
dehiscent +  and indehiscent +
0.17 cm1.7 mm <br />0.0017 m <br /> (0.19 cm1.9 mm <br />0.0019 m <br />) +
Disturbed nitrogen-rich habitats +
small white +
inflated +
11 cm110 mm <br />0.11 m <br /> (?) +
triangular;lanceolate;triangular;lanceolate;ovate;rhombic +
sessile +  and petiolate +
nonaromatic +
not fleshy +
0.05 cm0.5 mm <br />5.0e-4 m <br /> (0.08 cm0.8 mm <br />8.0e-4 m <br />) +
not winged +  and winged +
sinuate-dentate +  and dentate +
entire +  and toothed +
crassinucellate +  and bitegmic +
campylotropous +
1 +  and single +
persistent +  and deciduous +
nonadherent +
chartaceous +  and membranaceous +
0.3 cm3 mm <br />0.003 m <br /> (4.5 cm45 mm <br />0.045 m <br />) +
Fruiting early summer–fall. +
pointing +  and ascending +
bulbous +  and taprooted +
fusiform +
fleshy +  and fibrous +
honeycomb-pitted +
reddish-brown +, brown +  and black +
0.9mm +  and 1mm +
lenticular +
cylindric +
not imbricate +
keeled +  and rounded +
opposite +  and alternate +
glabrous +  and sparsely farinose +
not fleshy +
filiform +
0.3 cm3 mm <br />0.003 m <br /> (?) +  and 2 cm20 mm <br />0.02 m <br /> (?) +
sessile +  and petiolate +
reduced;small +
horizontal +  and vertical +
verrucate +
Chenopodium ficifolium +
Chenopodium subsect. Favosa +
species +
0.3 cm3 mm <br />0.003 m <br /> (?) +
dehiscent +  and indehiscent +
depressed-ovoid +
glabrous +  and pubescent +
polygamous +, dioecious +  and monoecious +
not imbricate +
keeled +  and rounded +