Brassica elongata

Distribution

Brassica elongata is a native species that spreads from Eastern European countries starting from Austria to the Asian-Temperate that extends to Afghanistan and Iran. There are also areas in Northern Africa near Morocco with similar arid climates that have B. elongata as a native species. B. elongata was first collected in the United States at Linnton, Oregon by Wilhelm Suksdorf in 1911. The collection occurred near a surrounding ballast where ships were often unloaded but its specific subspecies of B. elongata was unknown. The next recording had occurred in Bingen, Washington in 1915. Thereafter in 1968, with no apparent evidence of the species spreading, Brassica elongata subsp. integrifolia was discovered by John Thomas Howell, an American botanist, while driving on the roadsides of US Highway 50 in the east-central regions of Nevada.

Habitat and ecology

Brassica elongata is a perennial plant. Its habitat is often located in semi-arid to arid climates in regions located in Europe, central Asia, North America, Africa, and Australia. The plant undergoes its flowering during June through July in the Northern Hemisphere. It can grow on disturbed ground and on roads with open juniper and sagebrush desert areas.

Description

Flowers and fruit

Petals on B. elongata are bright yellow to orange yellow with its apex rounded and mostly obovate. It reaches about 7 - and its sepals to about 3 -

in length. The filaments are 3.5 - in length with 1 - anthers. The fruits have a valvular section with 5–11 seeds per locule. The fruits are spreading and ascending from the base and its seeds may differ in shades of grey to brown. The seeds are 1 - in diameter and its seed coat is dehiscent and becomes mucilaginous when wet.

Potential commercial value

Research has shown when measuring fatty acid content of some of the commonly known Brassicacae, such as Brassica napus, B. nigra and B. rapa, B. elongata has shown to have one of the higher counts of fatty acids in concentration of mass per leaf. These fatty acids, α-linolenic acid (C18:3n-3) and linoleic acid (C18:2n-6), are nutritional omega-3 oils and compounds that the human body is unable to synthesize. Research has shown that increased deficiencies in these polyunsaturated fatty acids lead to a higher rate of diseases for human populations in industrialized countries. While the USDA has labeled B. elongata as a noxious weed, cultivating this plant in its natural harsh and arid climate in order to harvest its organic compounds has a promising upside in a low risk scenario.

References

References

1. {{PLANTS
2. {{BSBI 2007
3. {{GRIN
4. Rollins, Reed C.. (Apr–Jun 1982). "A new species of the Asiatic genus ''Stroganowia'' (Cruciderae) from North America and its biogeographic implications". Systematic Botany.
5. Velasco, Leonardo. (1198). "Variability for the fatty acid composition of the seed oil in a germplasm collection of the genus ''Brassica''". Genetic Resources and Crop Evolution.
6. Ayaz, Faik A.. (2006). "Nutrient contents of kale (''Brassica oleracae'' L. var. ''acephala'' DC.)". Food Chemistry.
7. "USDA Plants Database".
8. Flora of North America Editorial Committee. (2010). "Flora of North America: Magniliophyta: Salicaceae to Brassicaceae". Oxford University Press.
9. Young, James A.. (Nov 2003). "''Brassica elongata'' ssp. ''integrifolia'' seed germination". Journal of Range Management.