''Senna bicapsularis'' is a species of the
legume genus
Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nom ...
''
Senna'', native to northern
South America
South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the sout ...
, from
Panama
Panama ( , ; es, link=no, Panamá ), officially the Republic of Panama ( es, República de Panamá), is a transcontinental country spanning the southern part of North America and the northern part of South America. It is bordered by Co ...
south to
Venezuela
Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...
and
Colombia, and also the
West Indies
The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greate ...
. Common names include rambling senna (formerly "cassia"), winter cassia, Christmas bush, money bush, and yellow candlewood.
In
Florida
Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...
,
Senna pendula is usually cultivated as, and misapplied to, S. bicapsularis.
Description
It is a
semi-evergreen
Semi-deciduous or semi-evergreen is a botanical term which refers to plants that lose their foliage for a very short period, when old leaves fall off and new foliage growth is starting. This phenomenon occurs in tropical and sub-tropical woody spe ...
shrub growing to 3.5 m tall with a low spreading crown that reproduces by seed. It can grow from 2 - 12 metres tall and it branches from near the base.
The
leaves are 2.5–9 cm long, pinnate, with six to eight leaflets; the leaflets are 1.6–4.5 cm long and 1.1–2.3 cm broad. The yellow
flower
A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechani ...
s are produced in masses with a few together on short
racemes and 12–16 mm long. The plant flowers from autumn to winter, attracting bees and butterflies.
[
''Senna bicapsularis'' is distinguished from '' Senna pendula'' by having 3 pairs of leaflets on each leaf and elongated ]pedicel
Pedicle or pedicel may refer to:
Human anatomy
*Pedicle of vertebral arch, the segment between the transverse process and the vertebral body, and is often used as a radiographic marker and entry point in vertebroplasty and kyphoplasty procedures
...
s (flower stalks), while 'S. pendula' has 4-7 pairs of leaflets on each leaf and a gland between each pair of leaflets, with shorter flower stalks. S. bicapsularis flowers from late fall to winter depending on climate, whilst 'S. pendula' can flower from as early as late summer. Senna pendula can grow very easily from seed, while bicapsularis has a tough seed coat that needs mechanical scarification to sprout with success.
Uses
The Nahuas
The Nahuas () are a group of the indigenous people of Mexico, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua. They comprise the largest indigenous group in Mexico and second largest in El Salvador. The Mexica (Aztecs) were of Nahua ethnicity, a ...
of San Luis Potosi resort to this plant for the healing of the enchantment. For this reason, the patient is cleaned with seven leaves of its leaves, passing them throughout the body. Likewise, as part of this treatment, while the healer prays, he perfumes the patient's body with a charcoal, rosemary
''Salvia rosmarinus'' (), commonly known as rosemary, is a shrub with fragrant, evergreen, needle-like leaves and white, pink, purple, or blue flowers, native to the Mediterranean region. Until 2017, it was known by the scientific name ''Rosmar ...
and copal
Copal is tree resin, particularly the aromatic resins from the copal tree ''Protium copal'' (Burseraceae) used by the cultures of pre-Columbian Mesoamerica as ceremonially burned incense and for other purposes. More generally, copal includes re ...
incense and then cleanses it with an egg to remove the "bad air" that has taken possession of his body.
The leaves are edible and are used to cure erysipelas
Erysipelas () is a relatively common bacterial infection of the superficial layer of the skin ( upper dermis), extending to the superficial lymphatic vessels within the skin, characterized by a raised, well-defined, tender, bright red rash, t ...
in Morelos, and as an antiseptic
An antiseptic (from Greek ἀντί ''anti'', "against" and σηπτικός ''sēptikos'', "putrefactive") is an antimicrobial substance or compound that is applied to living tissue/skin to reduce the possibility of infection, sepsis, or putre ...
in Oaxaca
Oaxaca ( , also , , from nci, Huāxyacac ), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Oaxaca ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Oaxaca), is one of the 32 states that compose the political divisions of Mexico, Federative Entities of Mexico. It is ...
. The sap from emaciated leaves can be used externally, with salt, to heal rashes
A rash is a change of the human skin which affects its color, appearance, or texture.
A rash may be localized in one part of the body, or affect all the skin. Rashes may cause the skin to change color, itch, become warm, bumpy, chapped, dry, cra ...
, sore
Sore may refer to:
* Ulcer (dermatology), a sore on the skin or a mucous membrane
* Sore, a mild pain or ache
* ''Sore'' (album), by Buzzov*en
* Sore (band), an Indonesian rock band
* Sore, Landes, a village in the Landes département of France
* ...
s, bites, stings, eczema
Dermatitis is inflammation of the skin, typically characterized by itchiness, redness and a rash. In cases of short duration, there may be small blisters, while in long-term cases the skin may become thickened. The area of skin involved can ...
, scabies, ringworm
Dermatophytosis, also known as ringworm, is a fungal infection of the skin. Typically it results in a red, itchy, scaly, circular rash. Hair loss may occur in the area affected. Symptoms begin four to fourteen days after exposure. Multiple ar ...
and thrush. In the 20th century, Maximino Martínez points out the following uses: cathartic
In medicine, a cathartic is a substance that ''accelerates'' defecation. This is similar to a laxative, which is a substance that ''eases'' defecation, usually by softening feces. It is possible for a substance to be both a laxative and a catha ...
and to counteract the effects of arthropod
Arthropods (, (gen. ποδός)) are invertebrate animals with an exoskeleton, a segmented body, and paired jointed appendages. Arthropods form the phylum Arthropoda. They are distinguished by their jointed limbs and cuticle made of chiti ...
stings.
The seedpod flavour resembles tamarind
Tamarind (''Tamarindus indica'') is a leguminous tree bearing edible fruit that is probably indigenous to tropical Africa. The genus ''Tamarindus'' is monotypic, meaning that it contains only this species. It belongs to the family Fabaceae ...
. The leaves can be cooked as a vegetable, which can be mixed with other leaves, beans or pea
The pea is most commonly the small spherical seed or the seed-pod of the flowering plant species ''Pisum sativum''. Each pod contains several peas, which can be green or yellow. Botanically, pea pods are fruit, since they contain seeds and d ...
s.
Invasive species
It is naturalised
Naturalization (or naturalisation) is the legal act or process by which a non-citizen of a country may acquire citizenship or nationality of that country. It may be done automatically by a statute, i.e., without any effort on the part of the i ...
and invasive in several coastal areas in the tropics, including Tanzania
Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands ...
, Kenya
)
, national_anthem = " Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"()
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, image_map2 =
, capital = Nairobi
, coordinates =
, largest_city = Nairobi
...
, the Galápagos Islands
The Galápagos Islands (Spanish: , , ) are an archipelago of volcanic islands. They are distributed on each side of the equator in the Pacific Ocean, surrounding the centre of the Western Hemisphere, and are part of the Republic of Ecuador ...
and New Caledonia, where it is found in roadsides and disturbed areas, wooded grasslands, fallow
Fallow is a farming technique in which arable land is left without sowing for one or more vegetative cycles. The goal of fallowing is to allow the land to recover and store organic matter while retaining moisture and disrupting pest life cycl ...
land and riparian
A riparian zone or riparian area is the interface between land and a river or stream. Riparian is also the proper nomenclature for one of the terrestrial biomes of the Earth. Plant habitats and communities along the river margins and banks a ...
zones. [PIER (2006)]
Chemistry
The leaves and stems contain chaksinelike alkaloid
Alkaloids are a class of basic, naturally occurring organic compounds that contain at least one nitrogen atom. This group also includes some related compounds with neutral and even weakly acidic properties. Some synthetic compounds of similar ...
s. The seeds contain galactomannan
Galactomannans are polysaccharides consisting of a mannose backbone with galactose side groups, more specifically, a (1-4)-linked beta-D-mannopyranose backbone with branchpoints from their 6-positions linked to alpha-D-galactose, (i.e. 1-6-linke ...
. The presence in the plant of cassin , 2,6- dialkyl-3-hydroxypyridine and socassidine has also been reported
Synonyms
''Senna bicapsularis'' has been described under a wide variety of names that are today considered its synonym
A synonym is a word, morpheme, or phrase that means exactly or nearly the same as another word, morpheme, or phrase in a given language. For example, in the English language, the words ''begin'', ''start'', ''commence'', and ''initiate'' are all ...
s. Some of these were also applied to related plants in error. This phenomenon has happened with other taxa
In biology, a taxon (back-formation from ''taxonomy''; plural taxa) is a group of one or more populations of an organism or organisms seen by taxonomists to form a unit. Although neither is required, a taxon is usually known by a particular nam ...
, which were mis-applied to this plant:[ILDIS (2005)]
* ''Adipera bicapsularis'' (L.) Britton & Wilson
* ''Adipera spiciflora'' Pittier
* ''Cassia berterii'' Colla
* ''Cassia bicapsularis'' L.
:''Cassia bicapsularis'' ''sensu'' Bojer is erroneous for '' Senna pendula''.
:''Cassia bicapsularis'' of other authors is erroneous for ''Senna pendula'' var. ''glabrata''
* ''Cassia bicapsularis'' L. var. ''aristata'' DC.
:''Cassia aristata'' Benth. is a synonym of '' Chamaecrista aristata''
* ''Cassia bicapsularis'' L. var. ''quadrijuga'' DC.
* ''Cassia collae'' G.Don
* ''Cassia emarginata'' L.
:''Cassia emarginata'' Clos is a synonym of '' Senna candolleana''
:''Cassia emarginata'' Mill. is a synonym of '' Chamaecrista pilosa''
* ''Cassia inflata'' Spreng.
* ''Cassia laevigata'' ''sensu'' Prain
:''Cassia laevigata'' Willd. is a synonym of ''Senna septemtrionalis
''Senna septemtrionalis'', the arsenic bush, is a plant species in the genus '' Senna''.
See also
* List of vascular plants of Norfolk Island (Naturalised)
References
External links
septemtrionalis
Plants described in 1802
{{Caes ...
''
:''Cassia laevigata'' of other authors is erroneous for ''Senna occidentalis
''Senna occidentalis'' ndian vernacular name ''Usaya ki Fali''is a pantropical plant species, native to the Americas. The species was formerly placed in the genus '' Cassia''.
Vernacular names in English include septicweed, coffee senna, coffee ...
''
* ''Cassia limensis'' Lam.
* ''Cassia sennoides'' Jacq.
* ''Cassia spiciflora'' (Pittier) Pittier
* ''Cathartocarpus bicapsularis'' (L.) Ham.
* ''Chamaefistula inflata'' G.Don
* ''Isandrina arborescens'' Raf.
* ''Isandrina emarginata'' (L.) Britton & Rose
Footnotes
References
* (2005)
''Senna bicapsularis''
Version 10.01, November 2005. Retrieved 2007-DEC-20.
* (2006)
Version of 2006-OCT-25. Retrieved 2007-DEC-20.
* (2007): Germplasm Resources Information Network
''Senna bicapsularis''
Retrieved 2007-DEC-20.
{{Taxonbar, from=Q7450831
bicapsularis
Plants described in 1753
Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus
Flora of Panama
Flora of Venezuela
Flora of Colombia
Flora of Mexico