Cynanchum
Encyclopedia
Cynanchum is a genus
of about 300 species
including some swallowwort
s, belonging to the family
Apocynaceae
. The taxon name comes from Greek
kynos (meaning "dog") and anchein ("to choke"), referring to the toxicity
of these plants. Hence the common name for several species is dog-strangling vine. Most species
are non-succulent climbers or twiners.
s. The leaves are usually oppositely arranged and sometimes are borne on petioles
. The inflorescence
s and flowers come in a variety of shapes.
Like other species of the milkweed family
, these plants bear follicles
, which are podlike dry fruits.
and subtropics
. Several species also grow in temperate
regions.
Cynanchum louiseae
, the black swallowwort, is a troublesome noxious weed in parts of the northern United States.
, Pentarrhinum and Vincetoxicum
, with a group of mostly Old World species staying in Cynanchum.
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
of about 300 species
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
including some swallowwort
Swallowwort
Swallowwort is a term used for several plants and plant families. While the term "Swallowwort" may be derived from description of poisonous effects; there were, in the past plants used medicinally for tonsillitis and referred to as swallowort....
s, belonging to the family
Family (biology)
In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...
Apocynaceae
Apocynaceae
The Apocynaceae or dogbane family is a family of flowering plants that includes trees, shrubs, herbs, and lianas.Many species are tall trees found in tropical rainforests, and most are from the tropics and subtropics, but some grow in tropical dry, xeric environments. There are also perennial herbs...
. The taxon name comes from Greek
Greek language
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
kynos (meaning "dog") and anchein ("to choke"), referring to the toxicity
Toxicity
Toxicity is the degree to which a substance can damage a living or non-living organisms. Toxicity can refer to the effect on a whole organism, such as an animal, bacterium, or plant, as well as the effect on a substructure of the organism, such as a cell or an organ , such as the liver...
of these plants. Hence the common name for several species is dog-strangling vine. Most species
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
are non-succulent climbers or twiners.
Morphology
These plants are perennial herbs or subshrubs, often growing from rhizomeRhizome
In botany and dendrology, a rhizome is a characteristically horizontal stem of a plant that is usually found underground, often sending out roots and shoots from its nodes...
s. The leaves are usually oppositely arranged and sometimes are borne on petioles
Petiole (botany)
In botany, the petiole is the stalk attaching the leaf blade to the stem. The petiole usually has the same internal structure as the stem. Outgrowths appearing on each side of the petiole are called stipules. Leaves lacking a petiole are called sessile, or clasping when they partly surround the...
. The inflorescence
Inflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Strictly, it is the part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed and which is accordingly modified...
s and flowers come in a variety of shapes.
Like other species of the milkweed family
Apocynaceae
The Apocynaceae or dogbane family is a family of flowering plants that includes trees, shrubs, herbs, and lianas.Many species are tall trees found in tropical rainforests, and most are from the tropics and subtropics, but some grow in tropical dry, xeric environments. There are also perennial herbs...
, these plants bear follicles
Follicle (fruit)
In botany, a follicle is a dry unilocular many-seeded fruit formed from one carpel and dehiscing by the ventral suture in order to release seeds, such as in larkspur, magnolia, banksia, peony and milkweed....
, which are podlike dry fruits.
Distribution
These species are found worldwide in the tropicsTropics
The tropics is a region of the Earth surrounding the Equator. It is limited in latitude by the Tropic of Cancer in the northern hemisphere at approximately N and the Tropic of Capricorn in the southern hemisphere at S; these latitudes correspond to the axial tilt of the Earth...
and subtropics
Subtropics
The subtropics are the geographical and climatical zone of the Earth immediately north and south of the tropical zone, which is bounded by the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn, at latitudes 23.5°N and 23.5°S...
. Several species also grow in temperate
Temperate
In geography, temperate or tepid latitudes of the globe lie between the tropics and the polar circles. The changes in these regions between summer and winter are generally relatively moderate, rather than extreme hot or cold...
regions.
Importance
The root of Cynanchum atratum is used in Chinese traditional medicine and called Bai wei. Several other species had traditional Chinese medicinal uses.Cynanchum louiseae
Cynanchum louiseae
Cynanchum louiseae, a species in the milkweed family, is also known as Black swallow-wort, Louise's swallow-wort., or Black dog-strangling vine, Cynanchum louiseae is a species of plant that is native to Europe and is found primarily in Italy, France, Portugal, and Spain...
, the black swallowwort, is a troublesome noxious weed in parts of the northern United States.
Classification
Cynanchum as defined in the late 20th century (to include about 400 species) is polyphyletic and is being broken up. Species are being moved to genera including OrthosiaOrthosia
Orthosia is a genus of moths of the Noctuidae family.-Species:* Orthosia achsha* Orthosia acutangula* Orthosia addenda* Orthosia agravens* Orthosia albescens* Orthosia albiceps Hampson, 1894* Orthosia albomarginata...
, Pentarrhinum and Vincetoxicum
Vincetoxicum
Vincetoxicum is a genus of plant in family Apocynaceae. Although the species in Vincetoxicum have sometimes been included in Cynanchum, chemical and molecular evidence shows that Vincetoxicum is more closely related to Tylophora....
, with a group of mostly Old World species staying in Cynanchum.
Species
Species include:- Cynanchum acuminatifolium
- Cynanchum acutum
- Cynanchum altiscandens
- Cynanchum amplexicaule
- Cynanchum andringitrense
- Cynanchum angustifolium
- Cynanchum anthonyanum
- Cynanchum aphyllum
- Cynanchum atratum
- Cynanchum auriculatumCynanchum auriculatumCynanchum auriculatum is a species of climbing vine swallowworts. Its Chinese name is niu pi xiao [ 牛皮消 ] . C auriculatum flowers between June and August; fruiting from August all the way to December....
- Cynanchum arizonicum
- Cynanchum barbigerum - bearded swallowwort
- Cynanchum batangense
- Cynanchum bicampanulatum
- Cynanchum biondioides
- Cynanchum boudieri
- Cynanchum brevicoronatum
- Cynanchum bungei
- Cynanchum callialatum
- Cynanchum canescens
- Cynanchum carnosum
- Cynanchum chekiangense
- Cynanchum chinense
- Cynanchum christineae
- Cynanchum corymbosum
- Cynanchum danguyanum
- Cynanchum decipiens
- Cynanchum duclouxii
- Cynanchum elegansCynanchum elegansCynanchum elegans, the White-flowered wax plant, is a plant species in the genus Cynanchum found in New South Wales in Australia. It is a threatened species....
- Cynanchum erubescens
- Cynanchum fordii
- Cynanchum formosanum
- Cynanchum forrestii
- Cynanchum giraldii
- Cynanchum glaucescens
- Cynanchum floribundum - Dumara bush
- Cynanchum gortsianum
- Cynanchum heydei
- Cynanchum hydrophilum
- Cynanchum inamoenum
- Cynanchum insulanum
- Cynanchum kingdonwardii
- Cynanchum kintungense
- Cynanchum komarovii
- Cynanchum kwangsiense
- Cynanchum laeveCynanchum laeveCynanchum laeve is a vining perennial herb native to eastern and central U.S. states and Ontario. Common names include honeyvine, honeyvine milkweed, bluevine milkweed, climbing milkweed, and smooth swallow-wort.Like bindweed and some other members of the Convolvulaceae, Cynanchum laeve is a...
- honeyvine - Cynanchum lineare
- Cynanchum linearisepalum
- Cynanchum longipedunculatum
- Cynanchum louiseaeCynanchum louiseaeCynanchum louiseae, a species in the milkweed family, is also known as Black swallow-wort, Louise's swallow-wort., or Black dog-strangling vine, Cynanchum louiseae is a species of plant that is native to Europe and is found primarily in Italy, France, Portugal, and Spain...
- Louis's swallowwort - Cynanchum lysimachioides
- Cynanchum marnieranum
- Cynanchum megalanthum
- Cynanchum mongolicum
- Cynanchum mooreanum
- Cynanchum nigrum
- Cynanchum officinale
- Cynanchum otophyllum
- Cynanchum paniculatum
- Cynanchum pedunculatum
- Cynanchum pingshanicum
- Cynanchum puberulum
- Cynanchum purpureum
- Cynanchum racemosum
- Cynanchum riparium
- Cynanchum rockii
- Cynanchum rossicumCynanchum rossicumCynanchum rossicum is a flowering plant of the milkweed family. It is a perennial herb native to southern Europe. It has several common names including swallowwort, pale swallowwort, and dog-strangling vine.-Characteristics:...
- pale swallowwort,dog-strangling swallowwort, dog-strangling vine - Cynanchum sinoracemosum
- Cynanchum stauntonii
- Cynanchum stenophyllum
- Cynanchum sublanceolatum
- Cynanchum szechuanense
- Cynanchum taihangense
- Cynanchum thesioides
- Cynanchum utahenseCynanchum utahenseCynanchum utahense is a species of flowering plant in the Cynanchum genus of the dogbane family, known by the common names Utah swallowwort and Utah vine milkweed. This relatively uncommon perennial vine is native to the Mojave Desert from California to Utah and Arizona in the United States...
- Cynanchum versicolor
- Cynanchum verticillatum
- Cynanchum vincetoxicumVincetoxicum hirundinariaVincetoxicum hirundinaria is a long-lived herbaceous perennial of the genus Vincetoxicum in the family Apocynaceae. It is native to cliffs and slopes, especially in calcareous soils, of continental Eurasia . There are introduced populations in North America .-References:...
- Cynanchum volubile
- Cynanchum wallichii
- Cynanchum wangii
- Cynanchum wilfordii