Silphium perfoliatum
Encyclopedia
Silphium perfoliatum is a herbaceous perennial flowering plant in Asteraceae
, the aster family, it is native from Eastern and Central North America. It grows in prairies, open woodlands, and on stream banks.
There are two varieties: Silphium perfoliatum var. connatum and Silphium perfoliatum var. perfoliatum .
and since then it is still prized as an ornamental plant. It is found in open prairies clearings in bottomland woods.
In 1759, Carl Linnaeus named the plant.
The genus name, Silphium, is derived from the Greek word referring to a resinous juice. The species name, perfoliatum, means "through the leaf."
The species is found natively on the East Coast of the United States and Canada. During 1957, it was considered to have potential as a low maintenance fodder crop for livestock feeding because it is a long-lived perennial herb. It contains high levels of protein. It is considered to have a high feed value for meat and milk production for farm animals.
The plant has an extensive root system and does not transplant well except when very young.
The plant is listed as a threatened species in Michigan.
The petioles are widely winged. The petioles’ base is at the stem and it is fused with its opposite in its pair that form a cup where the stem is located. The stem terminates in a single flower bud.
All other species of Silphium present in Michigan does not have the fused leaf bases of cup plant.
The ray florets are a rich, golden yellow color. The flowers look very similar to a sunflower
.
The flowers usually measure about 2.5 cm in diameter. In the middle of the flower, there are small tubular disk flowers that are sterile. The disk flowers are perfect flowers but do not produce fruit. The corollas are tubular, 5 toothed, and the style is undivided. The disk florets are structurally bisexual, but the stamens are the only fertile part. The ray florets have female characteristics.
The ray florets eventually develop to become thin achenes. The brown achenes have possesses a marginal wing, that utilize the wind for dispersal. Silphium perfoliatum are able to establish colonies due to its central taproot system and shallow rhizome
s.
A multi-rhizomed clone originating from one seed have been observed to be 15 years old. The roots found in botanical gardens have been estimated to be more than 50 years old.
The species’ optimal flower growth is during July through September. The mature fruits are produced by the plant by October.
Insect pollinators including bees, bees, butterflies, and skippers
help to cross-fertilize flowers to produce seeds. Approximately twenty to thirty seeds are created in each flower head. One seed is about 9 to 15 mm long, 6–9 mm wide, flattened in shape, and a thickness of 1mm.
It grows in sandy moist bottomlands, floodplains, near streambeds, in or adjacent to open woodland.
The plant metabolizes by the Type C3 Pathway. This plant is highly adapted to endure extreme weather and natural inhospitable conditions. For example, during the winter, the roots remain dormant and can survive up to -30 degree Celsius weather. Under flooding, it can stay alive for about 10 to 15 days. Its optimal growing temperature is 20 degree Celsius.
USA (AL, AR, CT, GA, IA, IL, IN, KS, KY, LA, MA, MD, ME, MI, MN, MO, MS, NC, ND, NE, NJ, NY, OH, OK, PA, SD, TN, VA, VT, WI, WV), CAN (ON, QC)
.
The plant contains a gum and resin; the root has been used medicinally.
The resin has been made into chewing gum to prevent nausea and vomiting.
Native Americans would cut off the top of the plant stalk and collect the resinous sap that was emitted from the plant. The resin was used for a chewing gum to freshen breath.
The Winnebagos Tribe
believed that a potion made from the rhizome would provide supernatural powers. The people belonging to the tribe would drink this potion before hunting.
The people of the Chippewas tribe used the root extract for back and chest pains, to prevent excessive menstruation, and to treat lung hemorrhage. During the spring, the tender young leaves were cultivated as an acceptable food source by cooking or a salad.
The powdered form of Silphium perfoliatum L. has diaphoretic and tonic properties. It can help alleviate the symptoms of fevers, dry cough, asthma, spleen illness, heart and liver disease. The extract from the leaves of the plant has shown to lower cholesterol and triglycerides levels in blood. Studies show that the presence of phenolic acids is responsible for the species’ antiseptic activity to stimulate generation of IgG and IgM antibodies. In addition, it stimulates bile production of the gall bladder.
The Silphium perfoliatum L. plant contains amino acids, carbohydrates (inulinin rhizomes), L-ascorbic acid, terpenes with essential oils, triterpene saponins, carotenoids, phenolic acid, tannins, and flavonoids.
The long blossoming season and abundance of flowers provides a rich source for bees and the cultivation of honey.
during the summer. During cool temperatures in autumn, the fungus Botrytis
will cause the flower buds to wilt and turn black before blooming.
Eggs of the Gall wasp
are deposited within the stems of this plant. Consequently, the developing larvae feed within the stems.
Goldfinches
feed on the seeds of Silphium perfoliatum and drink the water collected by the “cups” on the stems. The fact that this species is able to form dense colonies, it provides a good shelter for birds. Herbivores such as cattle and sheep will eat the leaves the plant especially those of young plants.
Asteraceae
The Asteraceae or Compositae , is an exceedingly large and widespread family of vascular plants. The group has more than 22,750 currently accepted species, spread across 1620 genera and 12 subfamilies...
, the aster family, it is native from Eastern and Central North America. It grows in prairies, open woodlands, and on stream banks.
There are two varieties: Silphium perfoliatum var. connatum and Silphium perfoliatum var. perfoliatum .
History
The species Silphium perfoliatum is native to North America. During 1750, the species was introduced to the UK and Soviet UnionSoviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
and since then it is still prized as an ornamental plant. It is found in open prairies clearings in bottomland woods.
In 1759, Carl Linnaeus named the plant.
The genus name, Silphium, is derived from the Greek word referring to a resinous juice. The species name, perfoliatum, means "through the leaf."
The species is found natively on the East Coast of the United States and Canada. During 1957, it was considered to have potential as a low maintenance fodder crop for livestock feeding because it is a long-lived perennial herb. It contains high levels of protein. It is considered to have a high feed value for meat and milk production for farm animals.
The plant has an extensive root system and does not transplant well except when very young.
The plant is listed as a threatened species in Michigan.
Common names
Cup Plant, Carpenter’s weed, cup rosinweed, compass plant, pilot weed, squareweed, Indian-cupDescription
Silphium perfoliatum is an herbaceous perennial. A typical height this plant grows ranges from 1-2.5 m. The stem is square and glabrous. The stout, smooth, slightly hairy stem is strongly 4-angled. The leaves are in an opposite arrangement. The leaves are toothed and ovate leaf shape.The petioles are widely winged. The petioles’ base is at the stem and it is fused with its opposite in its pair that form a cup where the stem is located. The stem terminates in a single flower bud.
All other species of Silphium present in Michigan does not have the fused leaf bases of cup plant.
The ray florets are a rich, golden yellow color. The flowers look very similar to a sunflower
Sunflower
Sunflower is an annual plant native to the Americas. It possesses a large inflorescence . The sunflower got its name from its huge, fiery blooms, whose shape and image is often used to depict the sun. The sunflower has a rough, hairy stem, broad, coarsely toothed, rough leaves and circular heads...
.
The flowers usually measure about 2.5 cm in diameter. In the middle of the flower, there are small tubular disk flowers that are sterile. The disk flowers are perfect flowers but do not produce fruit. The corollas are tubular, 5 toothed, and the style is undivided. The disk florets are structurally bisexual, but the stamens are the only fertile part. The ray florets have female characteristics.
The ray florets eventually develop to become thin achenes. The brown achenes have possesses a marginal wing, that utilize the wind for dispersal. Silphium perfoliatum are able to establish colonies due to its central taproot system and shallow rhizome
Rhizome
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.
A multi-rhizomed clone originating from one seed have been observed to be 15 years old. The roots found in botanical gardens have been estimated to be more than 50 years old.
The species’ optimal flower growth is during July through September. The mature fruits are produced by the plant by October.
Insect pollinators including bees, bees, butterflies, and skippers
Skipper (butterfly)
A skipper or skipper butterfly is a butterfly of the family Hesperiidae. They are named after their quick, darting flight habits. There are more than 3500 recognized species of skippers and they occur worldwide, but with the greatest diversity in the Neotropical regions of Central and South...
help to cross-fertilize flowers to produce seeds. Approximately twenty to thirty seeds are created in each flower head. One seed is about 9 to 15 mm long, 6–9 mm wide, flattened in shape, and a thickness of 1mm.
It grows in sandy moist bottomlands, floodplains, near streambeds, in or adjacent to open woodland.
The plant metabolizes by the Type C3 Pathway. This plant is highly adapted to endure extreme weather and natural inhospitable conditions. For example, during the winter, the roots remain dormant and can survive up to -30 degree Celsius weather. Under flooding, it can stay alive for about 10 to 15 days. Its optimal growing temperature is 20 degree Celsius.
Distribution
Currently, it can be found in the following states:USA (AL, AR, CT, GA, IA, IL, IN, KS, KY, LA, MA, MD, ME, MI, MN, MO, MS, NC, ND, NE, NJ, NY, OH, OK, PA, SD, TN, VA, VT, WI, WV), CAN (ON, QC)
Uses
The plant produces a resin that has an odor similar to turpentineTurpentine
Turpentine is a fluid obtained by the distillation of resin obtained from trees, mainly pine trees. It is composed of terpenes, mainly the monoterpenes alpha-pinene and beta-pinene...
.
The plant contains a gum and resin; the root has been used medicinally.
The resin has been made into chewing gum to prevent nausea and vomiting.
Native Americans would cut off the top of the plant stalk and collect the resinous sap that was emitted from the plant. The resin was used for a chewing gum to freshen breath.
The Winnebagos Tribe
Ho-Chunk
The Ho-Chunk, also known as Winnebago, are a tribe of Native Americans, native to what is now Wisconsin and Illinois. There are two federally recognized Ho-Chunk tribes, the Ho-Chunk Nation of Wisconsin and Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska....
believed that a potion made from the rhizome would provide supernatural powers. The people belonging to the tribe would drink this potion before hunting.
The people of the Chippewas tribe used the root extract for back and chest pains, to prevent excessive menstruation, and to treat lung hemorrhage. During the spring, the tender young leaves were cultivated as an acceptable food source by cooking or a salad.
The powdered form of Silphium perfoliatum L. has diaphoretic and tonic properties. It can help alleviate the symptoms of fevers, dry cough, asthma, spleen illness, heart and liver disease. The extract from the leaves of the plant has shown to lower cholesterol and triglycerides levels in blood. Studies show that the presence of phenolic acids is responsible for the species’ antiseptic activity to stimulate generation of IgG and IgM antibodies. In addition, it stimulates bile production of the gall bladder.
The Silphium perfoliatum L. plant contains amino acids, carbohydrates (inulinin rhizomes), L-ascorbic acid, terpenes with essential oils, triterpene saponins, carotenoids, phenolic acid, tannins, and flavonoids.
The long blossoming season and abundance of flowers provides a rich source for bees and the cultivation of honey.
Disease and Herbivory
This species can be targeted by a fungus called SclerotiniaSclerotinia
Sclerotinia is a genus of fungi in the family Sclerotiniaceae. The widely distributed species contains 14 species....
during the summer. During cool temperatures in autumn, the fungus Botrytis
Botryotinia
Botryotinia is a genus of ascomycete fungi causing several plant diseases. The anamorphs of Botryotinia are mostly included in the imperfect fungi genus Botrytis...
will cause the flower buds to wilt and turn black before blooming.
Eggs of the Gall wasp
Gall wasp
Gall wasps , also called Gallflies, are a family of the order Hymenoptera and are classified with the Apocrita suborder of wasps in the superfamily Cynipoidea...
are deposited within the stems of this plant. Consequently, the developing larvae feed within the stems.
Goldfinches
American Goldfinch
The American Goldfinch , also known as the Eastern Goldfinch and Wild Canary, is a small North American bird in the finch family...
feed on the seeds of Silphium perfoliatum and drink the water collected by the “cups” on the stems. The fact that this species is able to form dense colonies, it provides a good shelter for birds. Herbivores such as cattle and sheep will eat the leaves the plant especially those of young plants.
