''Vicoa'' is a
genus of
flowering plants belonging to
elecampane tribe within the
Asteraceae (sunflower family).
It is found in parts of Africa and stretching across Asia to Indochina. It was described by
Alexandre Henri Gabriel de Cassini (Cass.) in 1829, but the genus was later absorbed into the ''Pentanema'' genus (also within the ''Asteraceae'' family). Until molecular analysis in 2018, determined it was a separate genus.
Description
They are
annual or
perennial herbs,
[Gyanendra Pandey (Sri Satguru Publications, 1994) ] with simple (undivided or unsegmented),
[James P. Mandaville ] or entire (not divided) leaves.
[ The leaves are arranged alternate (at different levels along the stem),][ with pinnately veining (lateral veins are arranged either side of the main vein) and they are mostly amplexicaule (the base is dilated and clasping the stem) at the base.][
They have flowers which have solitary,][ radiate heads (ray floret surrounding disc florets),][ which are either axillary (beside a leaf joint) or leaf opposed.][ They have a peduncle (flower stalk),][ and involucral bracts which are inbricate (overlapping) in several rows.][
The achenes (one-seeded indehiscent fruit) are subterete (partially circular in cross-section) with a pappus (a tuft or ring of hairs or scales borne above the ovary) of unequal bristles.][
]
Known species
There are about 14 accepted species;
Taxonomy
The genus name of ''Vicoa'' is in honour of Giambattista Vico (1668–1744), an Italian philosopher
A philosopher is a person who practices or investigates philosophy. The term ''philosopher'' comes from the grc, φιλόσοφος, , translit=philosophos, meaning 'lover of wisdom'. The coining of the term has been attributed to the Greek th ...
, rhetorician, historian, and jurist
A jurist is a person with expert knowledge of law; someone who analyses and comments on law. This person is usually a specialist legal scholar, mostly (but not always) with a formal qualification in law and often a legal practitioner. In the Uni ...
during the Italian Enlightenment. It was first described and published in ''Ann. Sci. Nat.'' (Paris) Vol.17 on page 418 in 1829.Pentanema
''Pentanema'' is a genus of Asian and African plants in the tribe Inuleae within the family Asteraceae
The family Asteraceae, alternatively Compositae, consists of over 32,000 known species of flowering plants in over 1,900 genera within th ...
'', until in 2018, the ''Vicoa'' genus was re-established due to molecular analysis of the ''Pentanema'' genus.
Range
It is native to parts of Africa and Asia. From the island of Cape Verde
, national_anthem = ()
, official_languages = Portuguese
, national_languages = Cape Verdean Creole
, capital = Praia
, coordinates =
, largest_city = capital
, demonym ...
, (Macaronesia), then the African countries of; Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Central African Republic, Chad, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mozambique, Senegal, Somalia, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe. Parts of Western Asia; Afghanistan and Iran. Central Asia; Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. China; south-central and southeast China and Tibet. Indian subcontinent; East Himalaya, India, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and West Himalaya. Lastly, parts of Indochina; Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam.
Uses
Some species such as ''Vicoa indica'' have used in folk medicine, in the Himalayas.[ The roots were used to treat kidney troubles and the leaves were used for stomach problems.][N. P. Singh ]
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q87176112
Inuleae
Asteraceae genera
Plants described in 1829
Flora of Cape Verde
Flora of West Tropical Africa
Flora of Cameroon
Flora of the Central African Republic
Flora of Northeast Tropical Africa
Flora of East Tropical Africa
Flora of South Tropical Africa
Flora of Afghanistan
Flora of Iran
Flora of Central Asia
Flora of South-Central China
Flora of Southeast China
Flora of Tibet
Flora of the Indian subcontinent
Flora of Indo-China
Taxa named by Henri Cassini