''Araujia sericifera'' is a

perennial A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also wide ...

vining plant in the genus ''

Araujia ''Araujia'' is a small genus of perennial vines in the dogbane family first described as a genus in 1817. The group is native to South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern ...

'', of the family

Apocynaceae Apocynaceae (from ''Apocynum'', Greek for "dog-away") is a family of flowering plants that includes trees, shrubs, herbs, stem succulents, and vines, commonly known as the dogbane family, because some taxa were used as dog poison Members of the ...

. The species was described in 1817 by the

Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...

botanist

Félix de Avelar Brotero Félix de Avelar Brotero (25 November 1744 – 4 August 1828) was a Portuguese botanist and professor. He fled to France in 1788 to escape persecution by the Portuguese Inquisition, and there published his ''Compendio de Botanica'' in order to ear ...

. The synonym ''Araujia hortorum'' is in more frequent use in New Zealand. Its common names include moth plant, white bladderflower, common moth vine, cruel vine, and false choko. Its attractive and abundant fragrant flowering make it a specimen worth cultivating. Its strong robustness combined with high seed production can make it invasive in certain environments, but not in France due to its sensitivity to frost.

Etymology

The genus name (''Araujia'') derives from

António de Araújo e Azevedo, 1st Count of Barca D. António de Araújo e Azevedo, 1st Count of Barca (14 May 1754 – 21 July 1817) was a Portuguese statesman, author and amateur botanist. Career After cooperating in the establishment of the Academy of Sciences in Lisbon, he represented h ...

(1754–1817), a Portuguese amateur botanist who conducted scientific studies and experiments in his own botanical garden. The species' Latin name ''sericifera'' means "silk-bearing" and refers to the silky hairs surrounding the seeds inside the fruits. ''Araujia sericofera'' is an incorrect

taxonomic synonym The Botanical and Zoological Codes of nomenclature treat the concept of synonymy differently. * In botanical nomenclature, a synonym is a scientific name that applies to a taxon that (now) goes by a different scientific name. For example, Linnae ...

for ''Araujia sericifera''.

Description

''Araujia sericifera'' is a creeping vine that can climb up to high. When broken it releases a milky, smelly exudate. Leaves are opposite, dark green, glossy and quite fleshy, almost triangular, with entire margins, about long and wide with an intact leaf margin. The upper side is dark green, bare and shiny, the underside is grey-green with felt-like hairs. When a stem, leaf or unripe fruit is broken, a white milky juice is produced at the breaking point. It is slightly toxic and can cause an allergic

skin reaction A skin condition, also known as cutaneous condition, is any medical condition that affects the integumentary system—the organ system that encloses the Human body, body and includes skin, Nail (anatomy), nails, and related muscle and glands. Th ...

when touched. The stems are thin and right-winding. They branch strongly and can lignify at the base. The plant usually wraps itself around other plants or around a post or the bars of a fence. The root system consists of a short

taproot A taproot is a large, central, and dominant root from which other roots sprout laterally. Typically a taproot is somewhat straight and very thick, is tapering in shape, and grows directly downward. In some plants, such as the carrot, the taproo ...

with superficial

lateral root Lateral roots, emerging from the pericycle (meristematic tissue), extend horizontally from the primary root (radicle) and over time makeup the iconic branching pattern of root systems. They contribute to anchoring the plant securely into the soil, ...

s. The plant's stems and leaves may senesce in late summer or early autumn, but new shoots will grow on the old stems as climbing support.

Inflorescences

The twining stems feature scented, cup-shaped bisexual flowers, around in width, with five white, cream-coloured, violet or pale pink petals. The flowers are generally pollinated by moths (hence the name "moth plant"), butterflies and bees (

entomophily Entomophily or insect pollination is a form of pollination whereby pollen of plants, especially but not only of flowering plants, is distributed by insects. Flowers pollinated by insects typically advertise themselves with bright colours, some ...

), but they can self-pollinate. The flowering period extends from late spring to summer. The flowers of Araujia sericifera resemble those of '' Stephanotis floribunda'' in some respects, a vine that also belongs to the dogbane family. The pear-shaped fruits are large pods, about long. They contain many black seeds attached to silky hairs that enable them to be distributed by the wind. The fruits outwardly resemble those of

chayote Chayote (''Sechium edule''), also known as mirliton and choko, is an edible plant belonging to the gourd family, Cucurbitaceae. This fruit was first cultivated in Mesoamerica between southern Mexico and Honduras, with the most genetic diversity ...

or choko (''Sechium edule''), hence the name ''false choko''.

Insect trap

The structure of the flower includes a number of wedge-shaped openings that function as an

insect trap Insect traps are used to monitor or directly reduce populations of insects or other arthropods, by trapping individuals and killing them. They typically use food, visual lures, chemical attractants and pheromones as bait and are installed so that ...

(hence its English name of "cruel plant"), without being a

carnivorous plant Carnivorous plants are plants that derive some or most of their nutrients from trapping and consuming animals or protozoans Protozoa (singular: protozoan or protozoon; alternative plural: protozoans) are a group of single-celled eukaryot ...

, where it occasionally and inadvertently traps the pollinator's

proboscis A proboscis () is an elongated appendage from the head of an animal, either a vertebrate or an invertebrate. In invertebrates, the term usually refers to tubular mouthparts used for feeding and sucking. In vertebrates, a proboscis is an elong ...

, leading to its death. When the foragers put their tongue in the flower, it is blocked by hooks and only the most robust insects manage to free themselves. The insects can die in the flower if the captivity lasts too long. The

hummingbird hawk-moth The hummingbird hawk-moth (''Macroglossum stellatarum'') is a species of hawk moth found across temperate regions of Eurasia. The species is named for its similarity to hummingbirds, as they feed on the nectar of tube-shaped flowers using their ...

monarch butterfly The monarch butterfly or simply monarch (''Danaus plexippus'') is a milkweed butterfly (subfamily Danainae) in the family Nymphalidae. Other common names, depending on region, include milkweed, common tiger, wanderer, and black-veined brown. It ...

, and some bees are often victims of this plant.

Distribution

The plant is native to South America: Peru mainly, but also Argentina and Brazil. It was introduced to Europe and other areas as an ornamental plant, but it is now considered a

noxious weed A noxious weed, harmful weed or injurious weed is a weed that has been designated by an agricultural or other governing authority as a plant that is injurious to agricultural or horticultural crops, natural habitats or ecosystems, or humans or liv ...

. This plant is now widely distributed in France by horticultural networks as a climbing and scent plant. It is established in rather rich, sunny soil (possibly in partial shade). It will only be perennial when protected from frost. Nowadays its geographical distribution includes southern Europe,

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

, North America (

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

), South America (

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

Paraguay Paraguay (; ), officially the Republic of Paraguay ( es, República del Paraguay, links=no; gn, Tavakuairetã Paraguái, links=si), is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to th ...

Uruguay Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

, and

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

Habitat

These plants grow in wastelands with trees and hedges, in forests and in rocky places or cliffs. They prefer sunny or partially shady places, at an altitude of above sea level. The fast-growing vines can cover a tree canopy in two or three years, competing with the tree for light, water, and nutrients. They damage trees by this competition and by twining so tightly around their branches that it

girdles A belt, especially if a cord or rope, is called a girdle if it is worn as part of Christian liturgical vestments, or in certain historical, literary or sports contexts. Girdles are used to close a cassock in Christian denominations, including ...

them.

Butterflies

The plant can be used as an alternative food source for

caterpillar Caterpillars ( ) are the larval stage of members of the order Lepidoptera (the insect order comprising butterflies and moths). As with most common names, the application of the word is arbitrary, since the larvae of sawflies (suborder Sym ...

s of the

. Although monarch caterpillars are not known to occur naturally on the plant, they will readily feed on leaves when supplies of ''

Gomphocarpus physocarpus ''Gomphocarpus physocarpus'', commonly known as hairy balls, balloonplant, balloon cotton-bush, bishop's balls, nailhead, or swan plant, is a species of dogbane. The plant is native to southeast Africa, but it has been widely naturalized. It is ...

'' (swan plant) have run out.

Gallery

File:Apocyanaceae - Araujia sericifera.JPG, Pink flower File:Apocyanaceae - Araujia sericea-2.JPG, Close-up of a flower, lateral view File:Araujia_sericifera_1.JPG, White flower File:Apocyanaceae - Araujia sericea-3.JPG, Bud File:Apocyanaceae - Araujia sericifera-1.JPG, Fruit File:Apocyanaceae - Araujia sericea-1.JPG, Leaf File:Araujia sericifera - Floraison.jpg, Habit Araujia sericifera 4158a jpg.jpg, Inside fruit

References

External links

European and Mediterranean Plant Protection Organization
''Araujia sericifera'' Brot.
BioLib
''Araujia sericifera''
Jepson eFlora, University of California, Berkeley
''Araujia sericifera'' Brot.
PLANTS database, Natural Resources Conservation Service, USDA
Photographs
CalPhotos, University of California, Berkeley
Araujia sericifera
photograph gallery, Natura Italiana {{Taxonbar, from=Q2704519 Asclepiadoideae Flora of South America Plants described in 1818 Vines Garden plants of South America Flora of Peru Flora of Brazil Flora of Argentina Invasive plant species in Australia