''Boehmeria'' is a
genus of 47
species of
flowering plants in the nettle family
Urticaceae. Of the species, 33 are indigenous to the
Old World
The "Old World" is a term for Afro-Eurasia that originated in Europe , after Europeans became aware of the existence of the Americas. It is used to contrast the continents of Africa, Europe, and Asia, which were previously thought of by the ...
and 14 to the
New World; no species is indigenous to both the Old and New Worlds. The species include
herbaceous
Herbaceous plants are vascular plants that have no persistent woody stems above ground. This broad category of plants includes many perennials, and nearly all annuals and biennials.
Definitions of "herb" and "herbaceous"
The fourth edition of t ...
perennials,
shrub
A shrub (often also called a bush) is a small-to-medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from trees ...
s and small
trees. Although related to the similar-looking species of the stinging nettles of genus ''
Urtica'', species of ''Boehmeria'' do not have stinging hairs. Because of the similarity in appearance, some species are commonly called "false nettles".
This genus is named in honor of the German botanist,
Georg Rudolf Boehmer.
Fossil record
14
fossil fruits of †''Boehmeria sibirica'' have been extracted from
borehole samples of the
Middle Miocene
The Middle Miocene is a sub-epoch of the Miocene Epoch made up of two stages: the Langhian and Serravallian stages. The Middle Miocene is preceded by the Early Miocene.
The sub-epoch lasted from 15.97 ± 0.05 Ma to 11.608 ± 0.005 Ma (million y ...
fresh water deposits in
Nowy Sacz Basin,
West Carpathians,
Poland.
Cultivation and uses
One species,
ramie (''Boehmeria nivea'') is an important
fibre
Fiber or fibre (from la, fibra, links=no) is a natural or artificial substance that is significantly longer than it is wide. Fibers are often used in the manufacture of other materials. The strongest engineering materials often incorporate ...
crop. Some are also used as
ornamental plants.
''Boehmeria'' species are used as food plants by the
larvae of some
Lepidoptera
Lepidoptera ( ) is an order (biology), order of insects that includes butterfly, butterflies and moths (both are called lepidopterans). About 180,000 species of the Lepidoptera are described, in 126 Family (biology), families and 46 Taxonomic r ...
species including ''
Bedellia boehmeriella'', which feeds exclusively on ''B. grandis''.
Species
New World species
The following species are found in the New World:
*''
Boehmeria aspera''
Wedd. 1856
*''
Boehmeria brevirostris''
Wedd. 1854
*''
Boehmeria bullata''
Kunth 1817
** subsp. ''bullata''
Kunth 1817
** subsp. ''coriacea''
(Killip) Friis & Wilmot-Dear 1996
** subsp. ''notobullata''
Friis & Wilmot-Dear 1996
*''
Boehmeria caudata''
Sw. 1788
*''
Boehmeria celtidifolia''
Kunth 1817
*''
Boehmeria cylindrica''
(L.) Sw. 1788
*''
Boehmeria dolichostachys''
Friis & Wilmot-Dear 1996
*''
Boehmeria excelsa''
(Bertero ex Steud.) Wedd. 1854
*''
Boehmeria pavonii''
Wedd. 1854
*''
Boehmeria radiata''
Burger 1975
*''
Boehmeria ramiflora''
Jacq. 1760
*''
Boehmeria repens''
(Griseb.) Wedd. 1869
*''
Boehmeria ulmifolia''
Wedd. 1854
Old World species
The following species are found in the Old World:
*''
Boehmeria beyeri''
C. B. Rob. 1911
*''
Boehmeria clidemioides''
Miq. 1851
** var. ''clidemioides''
Miq. 1851
** var. ''diffusa''
(Wedd.) Hand.-Mazz. 1929
** var. ''umbrosa''
Hand.-Mazz. 1929
*''
Boehmeria conica''
C.J.Chen, Wilmot-Dear & Friis 2003
*''
Boehmeria densiflora''
Hook. & Arn. 1838
** var. ''boninensis''
(Nakai) Friis & Wilmot-Dear 2013
** var. ''densiflora''
Hook. & Arn. 1838
*''
Boehmeria depauperata''
Wedd. 1854
*''
Boehmeria didymogyne''
Wedd. 1869
*''
Boehmeria grandis
''Boehmeria grandis'', commonly called ʻakolea, is a flowering species of the Urticaceae family that is endemic to the Hawaiian Islands. ʻakolea can be found in mesic to wet forests across Hawaiʻi along streams, on ridges, and valley floors. M ...
''
(Hook. & Arn.) A.Heller 1897
*''
Boehmeria hamiltoniana''
Wedd. 1856
*''
Boehmeria helferi''
Blume 1857
*''
Boehmeria heterophylla''
Wedd. 1856
** var. ''blumei''
(Wedd.) Friis & Wilmot-Dear 2013
** var. ''heterophylla''
Wedd. 1856
*''
Boehmeria holosericea''
Blume 1857
*''
Boehmeria japonica''
(L.f.) Miq. 1867
** var. ''japonica''
(L.f.) Miq. 1867
** var. ''silvestrii''
(Pamp.) Friis & Wilmot-Dear 2013
** var. ''tenera''
(Blume) Friis & Wilmot-Dear 2013
*''
Boehmeria kurzii''
Hook.f. 1888
*''
Boehmeria lanceolata''
Ridl. 1911, nec 1910
*''
Boehmeria leptostachya''
Friis & Wilmot-Dear 2010
*''
Boehmeria listeri''
Friis & Wilmot-Dear 2010
*''
Boehmeria manipurensis
''Boehmeria'' is a genus of 47 species of flowering plants in the nettle family Urticaceae. Of the species, 33 are indigenous to the Old World and 14 to the New World; no species is indigenous to both the Old and New Worlds. The species incl ...
''
Friis & Wilmot-Dear 2010
*''
Boehmeria multiflora''
C.B.Rob. 1908
*''
Boehmeria nivea
Ramie (pronounced: , ; from Malay ) is a flowering plant in the nettle family Urticaceae, native to eastern Asia. It is a herbaceous perennial growing to tall; ''
(L.) Hook f. & Arn. 1837
*''
Boehmeria ourantha''
Miq. 1851
*''
Boehmeria penduliflora''
Wedd. ex D.G.Long 1982
*''
Boehmeria pilosiuscula''
(Blume) Hassk. 1844
** var. ''pilosiuscula''
(Blume) Hassk. 1844
** var. ''suffruticosa''
Acharya, Friis & Wilmot-Dear 2013
*''
Boehmeria polystachya
''Boehmeria'' is a genus of 47 species of flowering plants in the nettle family Urticaceae. Of the species, 33 are indigenous to the Old World and 14 to the New World; no species is indigenous to both the Old and New Worlds. The species incl ...
''
Wedd. 1856
*''
Boehmeria rugosissima''
(Blume) Miq. 1851
*''
Boehmeria sieboldiana''
Blume 1857
** var. ''sieboldiana''
Blume 1857
** var. ''fuzhouensis''
(W.T.Wang) Friis & Wilmot-Dear 2013
*''
Boehmeria siamensis''
Craib 1916
*''
Boehmeria splitgerbera''
Koidz. 1926
*''
Boehmeria subintegra''
Friis & Wilmot-Dear 2010
*''
Boehmeria ternifolia''
D.Don 1825
** var. ''ternifolia''
D.Don 1825
** var. ''kamley''
(Acharya & Yonek.) Friis & Wilmot-Dear 2013
*''
Boehmeria tsaratananensis''
Leandri 1950
*''
Boehmeria virgata''
(G.Forst.) Guill. 1837
** subsp. ''virgata''
(G.Forst.) Guill. 1837
** var. ''virgata''
(G.Forst.) Guill. 1837
** var. ''velutina''
Friis & Wilmot-Dear 2013
** var. ''maxima''
Friis & Wilmot-Dear 2013
** var. ''austroqueenslandica''
(Domin) Friis & Wilmot-Dear 2013
** subsp. ''macrophylla''
(Hornem.) Friis & Wilmot-Dear 2013
** var. ''macrophylla''
(Hornem.) Friis & Wilmot-Dear 2013
** var. ''molliuscula''
(Blume) Friis & Wilmot-Dear 2013
** var. ''tomentosa''
(Wedd.) Friis & Wilmot-Dear 2013
** var. ''macrostachya''
(Wight) Friis & Wilmot-Dear 2013
** var. ''longissima''
(Hook.f.) Friis & Wilmot-Dear 2013
** var. ''canescens''
(Wedd.) Friis & Wilmot-Dear 2013
** var. ''rotundifolia''
(D.Don) Friis & Wilmot-Dear 2013
** var. ''minuticymosa''
Acharya, Friis & Wilmot-Dear 2013
** var. ''scabrella''
(Roxb.) Friis & Wilmot-Dear 2013
** var. ''sumatrana''
(Miq.) Friis & Wilmot-Dear 2013
** var. ''densiglomerata''
(W.T.Wang) Friis & Wilmot-Dear 2013
** var. ''strigosa''
(W.T.Wang) Friis & Wilmot-Dear 2013
*''
Boehmeria yaeyamensis''
Hatus. 1979
*''
Boehmeria zollingeriana''
Wedd. 1854
** var. ''podocarpa''
(W.T.Wang) W.T.Wang & C.J.Chen 2003
** var. ''zollingeriana''
Wedd. 1854
Synonyms
The following names have been synonymized:
*''
Boehmeria calophleba''
C. Moore & F. Muell. 1872 is a synonym of ''
Pouzolzia australis
''Pouzolzia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the nettle family. There are about 35 species distributed throughout the tropical world. Most are shrubs, and some are herbs. The genus was named for French botanist and plant collector Pierre Mar ...
''
(Endl.) Friis & Wilmot-Dear 2004.
*''
Boehmeria glomerulifera''
Miq. 1854 is a synonym of ''
Boehmeria depauperata''
Wedd. 1854.
*''
Boehmeria jamaicensis''
Urb. 1907 is a synonym of ''
Boehmeria ramiflora''
Jacq. 1760.
*''
Boehmeria macrophylla''
Hornem. 1815 is a synonym of ''
Boehmeria virgata''
(G.Forst.) Guill. 1837.
*''
Boehmeria platyphylla''
Buch.-Ham. ex D. Don 1825 is a synonym of ''
Boehmeria virgata''
(G.Forst.) Guill. 1837.
References
External links
Jepson Manual Treatment
{{Taxonbar, from=Q2130176
Urticaceae genera
Taxa named by Nikolaus Joseph von Jacquin