''Silaum silaus'', commonly known as pepper-saxifrage, 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 ...

plant in the family Apiaceae (Umbelliferae) (the carrot family) found across south-eastern, central, and western Europe, including the British Isles. It grows in damp grasslands on neutral soils.

Description

''Silaum silaus'' is an erect, glabrous umbellifer with woody, stout and cylindrical

tap roots ''Tap Roots'' is a 1948 Technicolor Western war film set during the American Civil War. It is very loosely based on the true life story of Newton Knight, a farm owner who attempted to secede Jones County from Mississippi.Stephen Jacobs, ''Bor ...

, which are hot and

aromatic In chemistry, aromaticity is a chemical property of cyclic ( ring-shaped), ''typically'' planar (flat) molecular structures with pi bonds in resonance (those containing delocalized electrons) that gives increased stability compared to satur ...

. ''S. silaus'' has dark grey or black petioles at the top; petiole remains are found at the bottom of the stem, which is solid and striate. Its

umbels In botany, an umbel is an inflorescence that consists of a number of short flower stalks (called pedicels) that spread from a common point, somewhat like umbrella ribs. The word was coined in botanical usage in the 1590s, from Latin ''umbella'' "p ...

are 2–6 cm in diameter, are

terminal Terminal may refer to: Computing Hardware * Terminal (electronics), a device for joining electrical circuits together * Terminal (telecommunication), a device communicating over a line * Computer terminal, a set of primary input and output devic ...

or axillary, and compound, with 4 to 15 angled rays of 1–3 cm; the

peduncle Peduncle may refer to: *Peduncle (botany), a stalk supporting an inflorescence, which is the part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed *Peduncle (anatomy), a stem, through which a mass of tissue is attached to a body **Peduncle (art ...

is larger than the rays, and both are

papillose This glossary of botanical terms is a list of definitions of terms and concepts relevant to botany and plants in general. Terms of plant morphology are included here as well as at the more specific Glossary of plant morphology and Glossary o ...

. The flowers are mostly hermaphroditic. ''Silaum silaus'' has 2–4-

pinnate Pinnation (also called pennation) is the arrangement of feather-like or multi-divided features arising from both sides of a common axis. Pinnation occurs in biological morphology, in crystals, such as some forms of ice or metal crystals, and in ...

leaves, which have a triangular and

lanceolate The following is a list of terms which are used to describe leaf morphology in the description and taxonomy of plants. Leaves may be simple (a single leaf blade or lamina) or compound (with several leaflets). The edge of the leaf may be regular o ...

outline, a long petiole and the primary divisions are long-stalked. Segments are 10–15 mm long, shaped from lanceolate to linear, the ends are acuminate or obtuse and

mucronate The following is a list of terms which are used to describe leaf morphology in the description and taxonomy of plants. Leaves may be simple (a single leaf blade or lamina) or compound (with several leaflets). The edge of the leaf may be regular o ...

, the leaves are finely

serrulate The following is a list of terms which are used to describe leaf morphology in the description and taxonomy of plants. Leaves may be simple (a single leaf blade or lamina) or compound (with several leaflets). The edge of the leaf may be regular o ...

, with a prominent

midrib This glossary of botanical terms is a list of definitions of terms and concepts relevant to botany and plants in general. Terms of plant morphology are included here as well as at the more specific Glossary of plant morphology and Glossary o ...

; the apex is often reddish in colour. There are 1-

upper cauline leaves present, which are either simple or reduced to a sheath; there is no petiole and the

cotyledons A cotyledon (; ; ; , gen. (), ) is a significant part of the embryo within the seed of a plant, and is defined as "the embryonic leaf in seed-bearing plants, one or more of which are the first to appear from a germinating seed." The numb ...

are tapered at the base. There are 0–3

bracts In botany, a bract is a modified or specialized leaf, especially one associated with a reproductive structure such as a flower, inflorescence axis or cone scale. Bracts are usually different from foliage leaves. They may be smaller, larger, or of ...

and 5–11 bracteoles; the

pedicels In botany, a pedicel is a stem that attaches a single flower to the inflorescence. Such inflorescences are described as ''pedicellate''. Description Pedicel refers to a structure connecting a single flower to its inflorescence. In the absenc ...

are linear-lanceolate with

scarious This glossary of botanical terms is a list of definitions of terms and concepts relevant to botany and plants in general. Terms of plant morphology are included here as well as at the more specific Glossary of plant morphology and Glossary o ...

margins. The flowers are yellowish and 1.5 mm across, with absent

sepals A sepal () is a part of the flower of angiosperms (flowering plants). Usually green, sepals typically function as protection for the flower in bud, and often as support for the petals when in bloom., p. 106 The term ''sepalum'' was coined b ...

, and the styles form a stylopodium. The fruits are 4–5 mm in size, oblong-ovoid, and are rarely compressed. The commissure is broad, the mericarps are prominent with slender ridges and lateral forming narrow wings; a carpophore is present. There are numerous vittae, with stout

of 2–3 mm in size, and the stigmas are capitate.

Taxonomy

''Silaum silaus'' was one of the many species described by

Carl Linnaeus Carl Linnaeus (; 23 May 1707 – 10 January 1778), also known after his ennoblement in 1761 as Carl von Linné Blunt (2004), p. 171. (), was a Swedish botanist, zoologist, taxonomist, and physician who formalised binomial nomenclature, the ...

in volume 1 of the 1753 edition of his ' as ''Peucedanum silaus''. It was given its current binomial name in 1915 by Swiss botanists Hans Schinz and

Albert Thellung Albert Thellung (12 May 1881 – 26 June 1928) was a Swiss botanist. He was a professor at the University of Zürich. The Austrian botanist Otto Stapf named the plant genus ''Thellungia'' of the grass family, Poaceae, after him, and Otto E ...

in 1915. The

etymology Etymology ()The New Oxford Dictionary of English (1998) – p. 633 "Etymology /ˌɛtɪˈmɒlədʒi/ the study of the class in words and the way their meanings have changed throughout time". is the study of the history of the Phonological chan ...

of the genus name ''Silaum ''is uncertain, although it may refer to the mountainous plateau La Sila in southern

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

. Another possible explanation is that ''Silaum'' may be derived from the yellow

ochre Ochre ( ; , ), or ocher in American English, is a natural clay earth pigment, a mixture of ferric oxide and varying amounts of clay and sand. It ranges in colour from yellow to deep orange or brown. It is also the name of the colours produced ...

, related to the colour of the plant's flowers. ''Silaus'' is an old generic name used by Pliny. ''Silaum silaus'' bears the common name pepper-saxifrage (with or without hyphenation) despite being neither a

saxifrage ''Saxifraga'' is the largest genus in the family Saxifragaceae, containing about 465 species of holarctic perennial plants, known as saxifrages or rockfoils. The Latin word ''saxifraga'' means literally "stone-breaker", from Latin ' ("rock" or " ...

nor peppery in taste.

Distribution and habitat

''Silaum silaus'' is found in western, central and south-eastern

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

(including

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It is ...

), north to the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

and

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

but is absent from

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

. In Great Britain, it is found mainly south of the far south of

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

. The species is listed as an

invasive species An invasive species otherwise known as an alien is an introduced organism that becomes overpopulated and harms its new environment. Although most introduced species are neutral or beneficial with respect to other species, invasive species ad ...

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...

. ''Silaum silaus'' grows in a wide variety of habitats, generally preferring those with damper soils. Specifically, ''S. silaus'' can be found in unimproved neutral grassland, railway and road verges and meadows (hay, water and lowland meadows); it is also occasionally found on chalk downs and vegetated

shingle Shingle may refer to: Construction *Roof shingles or wall shingles, including: **Wood shingle ***Shake (shingle), a wooden shingle that is split from a bolt, with a more rustic appearance than a sawed shingle ***Quercus imbricaria, or shingle oak ...

Ecology

''Silaum silaus'' is an indicator of agriculturally unimproved meadows, and is part of a group (in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

) of flowering plants specially associated with neutral grassland associated with low-nutrient regimes. This group is declining in the UK due to agricultural improvement, diffuse pollution and

habitat fragmentation Habitat fragmentation describes the emergence of discontinuities (fragmentation) in an organism's preferred environment (habitat), causing population fragmentation and ecosystem decay. Causes of habitat fragmentation include geological processes ...

and hence ''S. silaus'' is on the United Kingdom Biodiversity Action Plan. At least three species of

moth Moths are a paraphyletic group of insects that includes all members of the order Lepidoptera that are not butterflies, with moths making up the vast majority of the order. There are thought to be approximately 160,000 species of moth, many of w ...

larvae A larva (; plural larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle. The ...

in the UK use the plant as a food source – ''

Sitochroa palealis ''Sitochroa palealis'', the carrot seed moth, is a species of moth of the family Crambidae described by Michael Denis and Ignaz Schiffermüller in 1775. It is found in Europe and in 2002 the first specimen was reported in the United States. Th ...

'', '' Agonopterix ciliella'' and ''

Agonopterix yeatiana ''Agonopterix yeatiana'' is a moth of the family Depressariidae. It is found in most of Europe. The wingspan is 19–23 mm. The forewings are pale greyish ochreous, with a few black scales; veins sometimes marked with cloudy dark fuscous st ...

''. ''Silaum silaus'' fruit has been identified from substage III of the Hoxnian interglacial period (a stage in the middle

Pleistocene The Pleistocene ( , often referred to as the ''Ice age'') is the geological Epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 2,580,000 to 11,700 years ago, spanning the Earth's most recent period of repeated glaciations. Before a change was fina ...

) in the British Isles.

Uses

''Silaum silaus'' is listed in John Parkinson's 1640 work ''Theatrum Botanicum'' as being able to soothe "frets" in infants.

References

External links

* {{Taxonbar, from=Q1520956 Flora of Europe Plants described in 1753 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus silaus