The Catch-All Botany Thread

[thesummerqueen]

Less sex, more science:

http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg21...d-mud.html

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Botany photo of the day:

Morinda citrifolia is now fairly widely distributed around the world and goes by many names in different countries; it is often called noni, a Hawaiian term, and its English names include rotten cheesefruit, Indian mulberry, and canary wood. Though the species originated in southeast Asia and Australia, it is now naturalized in tropical regions of the Pacific, North America, and South America. Evidently, Morinda citrifolia (PDF) has been known to successfully establish after spreading to new areas, giving it the potential to become invasive. A unique trait the seeds have is the ability to stay viable for several months while in water--a useful skill when dispersing across oceans or rivers. However, the species is not currently considered a major threat.

Morinda citrifolia grows as a shrub or small tree, blooming in the summer and autumn. From a cluster of its flowers comes a single compound fruit or syncarp; the still-developing fruit in the photograph can be expected to turn yellow-white and grow to 5 to 10 cm in length. If you're looking for a possible natural remedy for ailments such as headaches, high blood pressure and muscle pains or if you just need some Vitamin C, the juice of the fruit can be drunk and is sold commercially. The species has also been investigated for prevention of cancer.

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I'm being annoying, I know, but there's some good stuff popping across my feeds today. Here's once for Kichi:



I found out about this one from the blog http://phytophactor.blogspot.com

My old friend Woody introduced me to this plant on our first trip to Australia 30 years ago for another botanical congress. “Stand next to that plant for a size comparison”, he said. Pointing to it, the Phactor said, “This one?” And the pointed finger was too close and a small hypodermic needle of a trichome (hair) slipped under the edge of my finger nail. The stinging sensation that resulted was something to behold because even though there was no visible injury at all, it felt like a hot ice pick had been shoved under my finger nail. The pain was severe and it just throbbed, and after subsiding 3-4 hours later, it would begin throbbing again every time my hand was in water. The rather innocent looking shrub that does this is Dendrocnide moroides, the stinging bush, one of the nastiest members of the nettle family. Another colleague tripped and fell into one, and the reaction and pain required a trip to hospital. Imagine how his showers felt after this! The fruit is a rather attractive red raspberry looking thing, but all those stinging hairs give you real pause about trying it. So visual ID of this plant is one of the first things you learn before doing field work in rainforests of Queensland. Slow learners will get a lesson they won’t forget.