... more 10.000 glossed keywords and links to more than 100 figures and schemes, about 100 tables etc. can be obtained in addition to this limited INTERNET version or in modified design as book by CRC Press, Taylor & Francis Group, Boca Raton, USA

abaca: the abaca plant is a Philippine original and a close relative of "pakol", which is a close relative of the banana; while the banana is valued for its fruit, the abaca is valued for its leaf sheaths; fibers removed from the leaf sheaths make ropes, clothing, and paper-based materials; the fibres are retted out of the outer sheaths of the petioles that form the pseudo-stem; its fruits are sweet but practically inedible due to the millions of seeds; the abaca is believed to have evolved in the Bicol area and from some primordial succulent plants, Musa textilis syn Cannabis gigantea (Moraceae), 2n = 2x = 20 agr

abaca banana >>> abaca

abaca-fibre >>> abaca

acha >>> hungry rice

achiote: a tropical American shrub which is cultivated as a food coloring; popular red dye (bixin) used for coloring butter and cheeses; dye derived from seeds of spiny red fruits; also used for body paint by South American Indians; chemically similar to beta-carotene and may protect skin from UV light, Bixa orellana (Bixaceae) hort

acidanthera: Acidanthera bicolor var. murielae (Iridaceae) hort

adlay: Coix lacryma-jobi (Gramineae), 2n = 2x = 20 hort agr

adley >>> adlay

adzuki bean: Phaseolus angularis syn Vigna aconitifolia (Leguminosae), 2n = 2x = 22 hort >>> pulse

Aegilops - Ziegenweizen m: a genus of grasses including several species of breeding and genetic interest; some of them contributed to the evolution of bread wheat; they are also used as donors of resistances and other genes for the cropped wheat, Aegilops ssp. (Gramineae) >>> Figure 10

aerial yam: also known as the potato yam, is of minor importance as a food crop but was probably important in ancient times; it is the only species that occurs wild in both Africa and Asia, Dioscorea bulbifera (Dioscoreaceae) hort

African millet >>> finger millet

African rice - Afrikanischer Reis m: Oryza glaberrima (Gramineae), 2n = 2x, A’A’ = 24 agr

African walnut - Afrikanische Walnuss f: Tetracarpidium conophorum (Euphorbiaceae) hort

African yam: there are more than 600 species of yam; as African yam several species are cultivated for the consumption of their starchy tubers in Africa, Asia, Latin America and Oceania;  they are used in a similar fashion to potatoes and sweet potatoes; there are hundreds of varieties; the word “yam” comes from Portuguese “inhame” or Spanish “ñame”, which both ultimately derive from the Wolof word “nyam”, meaning "to sample or taste"; yam tubers can grow up to two meters in length and weigh up to 70 kg; the yam has a rough skin which is difficult to peel, but which softens after heating; yam skins vary in color from dark brown to light pink; the majority of the yam is composed of a much softer substance known as the "meat"; this substance ranges in color from white to bright orange in ripe yams; yams are a primary agricultural commodity in West Africa and New Guinea; they were first cultivated in Africa and Asia about 8,000 BC; to this day, the yams are important for survival in these regions;yam tubers can be stored for 4-6 months without refrigeration, which makes them a valuable resource for the yearly period of food scarcity at the beginning of the wet seasos, Dioscorea rotundata (Dioscoreaceae), 2n = 2x = 40 hort agr

agave - Agave f: a semi-woody perennial native of the American continent; it is used for the production pulque, aquamiel, mescal and tequila, Agave americana et ssp. (Agavaceae) agr

Agropyron - Quecke f: Agropyron ssp. (Gramineae)

akee (apple): a West African tree with poisonous fruits; however, the white arils from naturally matured fruits are edible; now common in the West Indies, Blighia sapida (Sapindaceae) hort

Alexandrinian clover - Alexandrinerklee m: a clover of the multi-cut group, Trifolium alexandrinum (Leguminosae), 2n = 2x = 16 agr >>> Picture 013

alfalfa  (syn lucerne) - Luzerne f: a forage and hay crop; also used as a nitrogen-fixing cover crop or rotation crop; the usual flower color is purple, but the white-flowered ones show up regularly, each plant grows up to about 90 cm tall, looking like a small bush; it is an autotetraploid species; because of its good in vitro culture ability it became early a subject of biotechnological approaches; itis a cultigen species derived mainly from Medicago coerulea, which is indigenous to southwestern Iran, the Caucasus and eastern Anatolia; domestication appears to have started in the Bronze Age probably somewhere between 1,000 and 2,000 BC in the Near East, the initial cultivation of alfalfa is thought to have been stimulated by the need to feed horses, horses started being domesticated in Central Asia at about 2,500 BC and were brought into the Near East by invaders from Central Asia; by 400 BC, Lucerne was being grown in Europe, there are a wide variety of M. sativa cultivars some of which are the product of hybridization with other wild Medicago species in Europe and Asia, there are different cultivars for handling different climatic  extremes, the wide climatic tolerance of alfalfa is also because it has an extensive root system, which in some soils can extend 7 m below ground surface, thus making the most of available soil moisture at a wide range of depths, alfalfa grows best in unleached, non-acid soils, particularly those rich in calcium carbonate, it there grows particularly well in limestone derived soils, seed production by alfalfa can be detrimentally affected by poor pollination, often because honeybees, Apis mellifera, when extracting nectar, learn to avoid triggering the anthers and releasing pollen, solitary bees such as bumblebees, Bombus species,  are the best pollinators, Medicago sativa (Leguminosae), 2n = 2x, SS, 4x, SSSS = 16, 32 agr >>> Figure 43

alkanet root >>> alkanna

alkanna: Alkanna tuberculata syn A. tinctoria (Boraginaceae), 2n = 2x = 14 hort >>> Picture 014

alligator pear >>> avocado

allspice >>> pimento

almond - Mandel(baum) f/m: it is closely related to the peach and which originated in central and western Asia; it is self-incompatible and cross-pollination is essential for fruit formation; almonds are cultivated for the seeds, known as nuts, mainly in Turkey and the Mediterranean, as well as in California; in the Old World, almonds are normally grown from seed, while in North America, they are propagated vegetatively; the tree is from 10 to 18 feet high, with a pale-brown, rugged bark, and dividing into many spreading branches; the leaves, which are borne on glandular petioles, are between 2 and 4 inches long, about 9 lines broad, lanceolate, acuminate, thin, serrated, bright light-green, and glandular near the base; the flowers are moderately large, pink or white, sessile, and in pairs, appearing before the leaves; the calyx is reddish, with blunt segments; the petals are variable in size, always much larger than the calyx, ovate, concave, and irregularly notched; stamens spreading, about half the length of the petals; the fruit a leathery, hoary drupe, with the sarcocarp spontaneously cracking and dropping off the putamen; the stone is oblong, or ovate, acute, hard in various degrees, always rugged, and pitted with irregular holes; it is indigenous to most of the southern parts of Asia, and is cultivated in many parts of Southern Europe; the varieties of sweet almond found in commerce are the Valencia, Italian, Barbary, and Jordan; the latter, which are the finest of the sweet almonds, come from Malaga; they are hard-shelled, though they are generally deprived of the shell before being put on the market, Prunus amygdalus var.fragilis, Amygdalus communis syn Prunus amygdalus (Rosaceae), 2n = 2x = 16 hort

alsike (clover): Trifolium hybridum (Leguminosae), 2n = 2x = 16 agr

amaranth - Amaranth m: the annual plant is common in southern Europe and Asia; because of the morphological diversity amaranth can be an ornamental plant, a vegetable or grain crop and even a weedy plant; as vegetable it is known since the Roman time when it was used similar as spinach; shows C4 photosynthesis; the Asian amaranths are Amaranthus tricolor and A. lividis; they were selected as potherbs; they do not develop large inflorescences have only low seed yield; they are widely grown as a vegetable in India, East Indies, Southeast Asia, and Far East; the American amaranths were selected for increased grain production and large compound inflorescences; three species are used: A. cruentus (eastern North America, tropical highlands of Mexico, Central America, and South America, the species A. hypochondriacus is mainly grown in western Sierra Madre of Mexico; and the species A. caudatus in Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia, Amaranthus ssp. (Amaranthaceae); grain amaranth: Amaranthus caudatus or A. hypochondriacus syn A. frumentaceus syn A. leucocarpus (Amaranthaceae), 2n = 2x = 32; 2C DNA content 1.9 pg agr >>> dye amaranth hort >>> Figure 60 >>> Picture 007

http://newcrop.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/proceedings1996/v3-207.html

amarelle: Cerasus vulgaris var. caproniana (Rosaceae) hort

Amaryllis >>> hippie

American chestnut - Amerikanische Kastanie f: Castanea dentata (Fagaceae), 2n = 2x = 24 hort

American hazel - Amerikanische Haselnuss f: Corylus americana (Corylaceae), 2n = 2x = 22 hort

American plum - Amerikanische Pflaume f: the North American plum, which is a diploid, as compared to theEuropean plum, which is a hexaploid Prunus americana (Rosaceae), 2n = 2x = 16 hort

American yam: despite the economic and cultural importance of the indigenous “Amerindian” yam, D. trifida, very little is known about their origin, phylogeny, diversity and genetics; consequently, conventional breeding efforts for the selection of D. trifida genotypes resistant to potyviruses, which are directly involved in the regression of this species, have been seriously limited, Dioscorea trifida (Dioscoreae), 2n = 4x = 36, 40 (autotetraploid) agr hort

amorpha >>> bastard indigo

Amur grape - Amurwein m: Vitis amurensis (Vitaceae) hort

Andean common bean >>> French bean

anemone - Windröschen n: the genus Anemone includes many species cultivated for ornamental purposes; most cut flower cultivars belong to A. coronaria and are multiplied by seed and sold for cultivation as 1-year-old tubers; as cultivars represent a population of hybrid individuals derived from crosses between heterozygous parents, the use of a true F1hybrid became of intrest in orderto improve the uniformity and quality of the product; recently, somatic embryos and plantlets were regenerated from elite cultivars; the shortening to 15 months for the time required to produce homozygous lines is of great benefit for seed companies to invest in F1 hybrid breeding, Anemone coronaria (Ranunculaceae) hort bot biot

anise - Anis m: Pimpinella anisum (Umbelliferae) hort

anise hyssop (Korean mint, licorice mint) - Anisysop m: the tightly clustered whorls of tubular flowers are borne all summer long atop a three foot standard; one of the best for attracting pollinating insects; native to North America; recently discovered as a new herb plant, Agastache anisata (Labiatae) hort

annual meadow grass - Einjähriges Weidegras n: Poa annua (Gramineae) agr

ape >>> giant taro

apple - Apfel(baum) m/m: deciduous, infrequently evergreen, branching tree or shrub; leaves folded or twisted in buds, ovate or elliptic or lanceolate or oblong, lobed or serrate or serrulate; buds ovoid, a few overlapping scales; flowers white to pink or crimson, epigynous, in cymes; stamens 15 to 50; styles 2 to 5; ovary 3 to 5 cells; fruit a pome, oblong or oblate or conic or oblique, diameter 2 to 13 cm; various hues of green to yellow to red, varying russet and lenticel characteristics; flesh lacking stone cells;  there are about 30 species known; domestic apple derived mainly from Malus pumila (M. domestica syn M. pumila); domestic crap apple are hybrids of M. pumila and M. baccata; the origin of the apple as coming from either southwest Asia, in the Caucasus Mountains, or south-central Asia, on the slopes of the enormous mountain range that separates China, Kazakhstan and Krygystan; Russian scientists and a team of horticulturists from Cornell University (Ithaca, NY) is studying the genetic makeup of apples; thus far their trek has led them to identify the lower slopes of the Tian Shan as a possible location of the original apple; this area to the northeast of Alma-Ata is called the Dzungarian Alps and is referred to as the "original wild apple forest", within this wild forest, many varieties of apples have grown disease free for centuries; apples, as the Europeans knew them, were not native to America; explorers, Jesuits and Franciscan missionaries, and early European settlers brought seeds and occasionally small trees with them to plant orchards around their new homes; like the European, pioneers traveling west from New England carried with them their prized possessions to start a new life; it is believed that John ENDICOTT, and early governor of Massachusetts, brought the first apple tree to Massachusetts in the early 1600s; although apples were grown in Europe and other parts of the world, the fruition of the apple came when it arrived in North America; the warm summers and cold winters in America have helped perfect the fruit unlike anywhere else in the world, many new varieties were worthy of naming and are still grown; the first orchard in Massachusetts was planted around 1625 by a clergyman named William BLAXTON who owned a farm on Beacon Hill in Boston. He later moved to Pawtucket, Rhode Island and planted the first Rhode Island orchard in 1635; BLAXTON is credited for having grown the first named apple in America; apples are frequently named after the owner or location of origin; he named his apple “Blaxton's Yellow Sweeting“ but it was latter referred to as Sweet Rhode Island Greening (Rosaceae), 2n = 2x, 3x = 34, 51 hort >>> Figure 87

apricot - Aprikose(nbaum) f/m: Armeniaca manshurica syn Prunus armeniaca (Rosaceae), 2n = 2x = 16 hort

aquaporin(s) - Aquaporin(e) n: cell membrane proteins that facilitate water movement across bio-membranes; they are suggested to mediate not only water but also other molecules transports; aquaporin genes are known as major intrinsic protein (MIP) genes; e.g., in barley EST database, putative 24 MIPs (>>> contigs) were identified and 11 genes of plasma membrane type aquaporin (PIPs) were detected by PCR; expression of these 11 PIPs were investigated under salt (NaCl), osmotic (manitol), heavy metals (CuCl₂ and CdCl₂), and oxidative (H₂O₂) stresses; one of them, HvPIP2-1, was most abundant and its protein expression was also analyzed; it was confirmed that HvPIP2-1, encoded water channel activity in Xenopus  laevis oocytes injected with HvPIP2;1 cRNA; transcripts and proteins of HvPIP2;1 were reduced in barely roots under salt stress; over-expression of HvPIP2;1 increased the shoot/root ratio and raised salt sensitivity in transgenic rice plants, indicating HvPIP2;1 is involved in the cellular mechanism of >>> salt tolerance; over-expression of the HvPIP2;1 also increased internal CO₂ conductance and CO₂ assimilation in the leaves of transgenic rice plants, suggesting that HvPIP2;1 permeates CO₂ in addition to H₂O; recent reports suggested that aquaporins were involved in the flood-induced reduction of root water uptake, chilling-induced decrease of root water permeability, and other many physiological functions in plants phys biot

aralia: Aralia ssp. (Araliaceae) hort

arandi >>> Barbados nut

areca palm >>> betel nut

Armenian cherry - Armenische Kirsche f >>> amarelle

aroids, edible: Alocasia ssp., Colocasia ssp., Cyrtsperma ssp., Xanthsoma ssp. (Araceae) hort

arrowhead: Sagittaria sagittifolia (Alismataceae), 2n = 2x = 22 hort

arrowroot (starch): Maranta arundinacea (Marantaceae) hort

arrowroot canna: Canna glauca or C. edulis (Cannaceae) hort >>> Queensland arrowroot

artichoke: this Mediterranean crop is a perennial thistle and is vegetatively propagated, because true seedlings are very variable; immature flower heads are cooked and eaten; the tender receptacle and "meaty" phyllaries are dipped in butter; Cynara cardunculus syn Cynara cardunculus var. scolymus syn C. scolymus (Compositae), 2n = 2x = 34 hort

arugula >>> racket salad

arvi >>> taro

asp - Pappel f: Populus tremula (Salicaceae) fore

aspen >>> asp

asparagus - Spargel m: a dioecious vegetable that is perennial cultivated for its young succulent shoots; it derived its name from the ancient Greeks, who used the word to refer to all tender shoots picked and savored while very young; as dioecious vegetable, it is used since 3,000 years in Egypt; as a medical plant against cough and urinating sufferings it is used since more than 3,000 years in China; since the 15^th century it is grown in Europe; Germany, France, Spain, Greece, Belgium are the European countries with the highest production; in the world, Peru became the biggest exporter of asparagus; it is grown from seeds or rhizomes for its young, succulent shoots; breeding is a challenge since this dioecious crop is inevitably outpollinating; useful genotypes can be maintained by vegetative propagation; it is also possible to produce diploid homozygous hermaphrodite asparagus by diploidization of haploids obtained from twin seedlings; selfed seeds from those doubled haploids are highly uniform and available for seed-propagated asparagus, Asparagus officinalis (Liliaceae), 2n = 2x = 20; 2C DNA content 4.2 pg hort

asparagus bean - Spargelbohne f: Vigna unguiculata ssp. unguiculata syn Phaseolus unguiculata ssp. sesquipedalis (Leguminosae), 2n = 2x = 14 hort

asparagus pea - Spargelerbse f: in Europe a rarely grown vegetable, however, in southern Europe still common; although the habit is pea-like, it is related to clover;Tetragonolobus purpureus syn Lotus tetragonolobus (Leguminosae) hort >>> Picture 001

aster - Aster f: Aster ssp. (Compositae)

astragalus: Astragalus cicer (Leguminosae) agr

aubergine - Aubergine f >>> eggplant

aucuba: Aucuba japonica (Cornaceae) hort

auricula - Aurikel f: Primula ssp. (Primulaceae) hort >>> Picture 013

Australian nut - Australische Nuss f >>> Macadamia nut

Australian rice - Australischer Reis m: Oryza australiensis (Gramineae), 2n = 2x, EE = 24 agr

avocado (pear) - Avokado(pflaume) f/f: a highly nutritious salad fruit containing up to 30% oil that has a composition similar to olive oil; it originated in Central America (Mexico-Guatemala) but is now grown in most tropical and subtropical countries; the seed is highly heterozygous and selected clones must be propagated vegetatively as grafts on seedling stocks; the is tree belonging to the laurel family; its dark-green, thick-skinned, pear-shaped fruit has buttery-textured flesh; in 1998 three compounds have been identified in unripe avocados that are effective against cancer cells and also act as pesticides, Persea americana syn P. gratissima (Lauraceae), 2n = 2x = 24 hort

awnless brome >>> smooth brome

awusa nut >>> African walnut

azalee - Azalee f: Rhododendron simsii (Ericaceae) hort

azia cucumber: a type of giant cucumber derived from Asia (= azia); rarely grown in some European countries; it ripens with a deep yellow-orange color; it is used mainly for pickling, Cucumis sativus (Cucurbitaceae), 2n = 2x = 14, 2C DNA content 1.37-2.48 pg hort >>> Picture 001

bahiagrass - Bahiagras n: it was not mentioned as a turf till 1938; it was first found on a sodded sand bank in Florida (USA) and called “pensacola”; this excellent growing plant may have arrived as a stowaway on a fruit boat from Central or South America; as a crop it was released in 1944; in 1946, it was discovered as a diploid plant (2n = 20), which reproduces sexually based on variable progenies; native to eastern Argentina, the pensacola genotype has become one of the major forage grasses of the southeastern USA; pensacola is more cold tolerant than tetraploid bahiagrass cultivars; the tetraploid bahiagrass cytotype P. notatum var. latiflorum is the most common botanical variety in tropical and subtropical America, Paspalum notatum (Gramineae), 2n = 2x, 4x = 20, 40 agr

bajori: Pennisetum echinurussyn P. typhoideum (Gramineae) agr >>> pearl millet

bajra >>> pearl millet

balsam >>> garden balsam

balsam pear >>> bitter gourd

bambara groundnut: Vigna subterranea syn Voandzeia subterranea (Leguminosae), 2n = 2x = 22 hort >>> pulse >>> gynophore

bamboo cane - Bambus(rohr) m/n: Bambusa ssp. (Gramineae) agr

banana - Banane f: banana is one of the most important of all crops; it is a large monocotyledenous herb that originated in Southeast Asia; virtually all of the cultivars that are grown are thought to have been selected as naturally occurring hybrids in this region by the earliest of farmers; in fact, banana was one of the first crops to be domesticated by man; despite the current, clear understanding of its ancestry, the edible bananas' origins are often confused in the literature; almost all of the 300 or more cultivars that are known arose from two seeded, diploid species, Musa acuminata and M. balbisiana; they are diploid, triploid and tetraploid hybrids among subspecies of M. acuminata, and between M. acuminata and M. balbisiana; conventionally, the haploid contributions of the respective species to the cultivars are noted with an A and B, e.g., the Cavendish cultivars that are the mainstays of the export trades are pure triploid  M. acuminata and, thus, AAA; the species M. paradisiaca (the AAB plantains) and M. sapientum (the sweet dessert bananas, of which Silk AAB is the type cultivar) are invalid and no longer used; banana is now one of the most popular of all fruits; although it is viewed as only a dessert or an addition to breakfast cereal in most developed countries, it is actually a very important agricultural product; after rice, wheat and milk, it is the fourth most valuable food; in export, it ranks fourth among all agricultural commodities and is the most significant of all fruits, with world trade totaling $ 2.5 billion annually; yet, only 10 % of the annual global output of 86 million tons enters international commerce; much of the remaining harvest is consumed by poor subsistence farmers in tropical Africa, America and Asia; for most of the latter producers, banana and plantain (which is a type of banana) are staple foods that represent major dietary sources of carbohydrates, fiber, vitamins A, B6 and C, and potassium, phosphorus and calcium; Musa acuminate (AA genomes) and M. balbisiana (BB genomes) are the diploid ancestors of modern bananas that are mostly diploid or triploid cultivars with various combinations of the A and B genomes, including AA, AAA, BB, AAB and ABB, Musa ssp. (Musaceae), 2n = 2x, AA = 22; cultivated hybrids, acu-bal, 2n = 3x, AAA, AAB, ABB = 33 hort

barberrry: Berberis vulgaris (Berberidaceae) bot hort phyt

Barbados nut - Purgiernuss f: a perennial and a drought resistant shrub that grows up to 5m tall under favorable condition with spreading branches; the bark is smooth gray; it is native of Central America but introduced to many countries of Africa and India; there are male and female plants; it has yellow-green flowers and large (pale) green leaves; tthe black thin shelled seeds are considered toxic by the toxalbumin curcin; roasting the seeds seems to kill the toxic; they also contain a high percentage (< 37%) of clean oil used for candles, soap and recently bio-diesel production; the fruit contains 2 or 3 large black, oily seeds; it has insecticidal and fungicidal properties; its latex contains an alkaloid (jatrophine), which shows anticancerous properties, Jatropha curcas (Euphorbiaceae) agr

http://jatropha.org

barley - Gerste f: it is a commonly diploid cereal crop; it is ancient as the origins of agriculture itself; barley grain is used as feed for animals, malt, and human food; barley was a staple food as far back as 18,000 years ago; it was the energy food of the masses; its use as human food was very popular during the Roman Empire (hordeari) and it continued to be the main food cereal of northern Europe until the sixteenth century; barley is still an important staple food in several developing countries; in the highlands of Tibet, Nepal, Ethiopia, in the Andean countries, in some areas of North Africa, Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan, India and Russia, barley is used as human food either for bread making (usually mixed with bread wheat) or for specific recipes; the largest use of food barley is found in regions where other cereals do not grow well due to altitude, low rainfall or soil salinity; it evolved from wild forms of Hordeum spontaneum; there are types of two or six rows of ears; it is the fourth most commonly grown cereal in the world with a global production of about 200 Mio tons; it is the cereal, which has the most widespread natural distribution, Hordeum ssp.; two-rowed barley = H. distichon, six-rowed barley = H. vulgare (Gramineae), 2n = 2x, VV = 14, 2C DNA content 8.7-9.8 pg = 4900-5300 Mb  agr >>> Tables 15, 16, 30, 32, 35, 48, 50 >>> waxy hull-less barley

barnyard grass: Echinochloa crus-galli (Gramineae), 2n = 4x = 36 bot agr

basil - Basilikum n: Ocimum basilicum (Labiatae) hort >>> Picture 004

basket willow - Korbweide f: Salix viminalis, S. dasyclados, S. amygdalina, S. americana, S. purpurea, S. daphnoides, S. pentandra (Salicaceae) fore agr

bastard indigo(syn false Indigo): a native ornamental plant to the USA, with several species occurring naturally; many hybrids now exist to bring home gardeners to best color and growth habit; most native false indigos have blue flowers, however new varieties and cultivars are enhancing gardener's choices; it generally blooms late spring through early summer, Amorpha fructicosa (Leguminosae) hort agr

batata >>> sweet potato

bay-tree >>> laurel (-tree)

beach grass: Ammophila arenaria (Gramineae) bot agr

bean - Bohne f: Phaseolus ssp. (Leguminosae) hort

bearded wheatgrass: Elymus caninus (Gramineae) bot agr

beardgrass: Andropogon ischaemum (Gramineae) bot agr

beech - Buche f: a hardwood deciduous tree used in plantation forests; native to Europe; the tree has been in cultivation for a long time, Fagus sylvatica (Fagaceae) fore

beet - Rübe f: Beta vulgaris ssp. cicla (Chenopodiaceae) hort

beet rape - Kohlrübe f: Brassica rapa ssp. rapifera (Brassicaceae) agr >>> Figure 8

beetroot >>> red beet

begonia - Begonie f: Begonia ssp. (Begoniaceae) hort >>> Picture 004

Bengal gram >>> chickpea

bent >>> bent grass

bent grass: Agrostis vulgaris (Gramineae) bot agr

bergamot: Monarda didyma (Labiatae) hort

Berlandieri grape: Vitis berlandieri (Vitaceae) hort

bermudagrass - Bermudagras n: common Bermuda grass, Cynodon dactylon, and its interspecific hybrids with C. transvaalensis are the most popular turfgrasses for golf courses, sports turfs, as well as for lawns and roadsides throughout the south of USA; first recorded release of an improved cultivar was in the early 1940's; most cultivars are vegetatively propagated by either plugs, sod, or sprigs; first improved seeded Bermuda grass was the “Guyman” cultivar released in 1982; until that time, tetraploid Bermuda grass (2n=36) was the only seeded Bermuda grass being sold in the trade as “Arizona common” or simply “common” Bermuda grass, Cynodon dactylon (Gramineae), 2n = 2x, AA = 18 agr

Berseem clover >>> Egyptian clover

betel nut (palm) - Betelnuss n: Areca catechu (Palmae), 2n = 4x = 32 hort fore

bilberry >>> blueberry

bilimbi: Averrhoa bilimbi (Oxalidaceae) hort

billion dollar grass >>> barnyard grass

birch - Birke f: Betula ssp. (Betulaceae) fore

bird rape: Brassica rapa var. silvestris f. oleifera (Brassicaceae) agr >>> Figure 8

birdsfoot >>> finger millet

birdsfoot trefoil: Lotus corniculatus (Leguminosae), 2n = 2x, 4x = 12, 24, 2C DNA content 4.0 pg agr

bitter apple >>> colocynth

bitter gourd: Momordica charantia (Cucurbitaceae), 2n = 2x = 22 hort

black bent: Agrostis gigantea (Gramineae) bot agr

blackberry: Rubus rosa (Rosaceae) hort

black chokeberry: Aronia melanocarpa (Rosaceae), 2n=2x=34 hort >>> Picture 008

black currant: Ribes nigrum (Grossulariaceae), 2n = 2x = 16 hort >>> Picture 004

black-eyed pea >>> cow bean

blackgram >>> urd bean

blackgrass: Alopecurus myosuroides (Gramineae) bot agr

black locust: one of the most important stand-forming tree species; e.g., covering about 20 % of the forest area and providing about 18 % of the annual timber output in Hungary, Robinia pseudoaccacia (Leguminosae) fore

black medick: Medicago lupulina (Leguminosae) agr

black mustard: Brassica nigra (Brassicaceae), 2n = 2x, BB = 16 agr >>> Figure 8

black pepper - Schwarzer Pfeffer m: a vegetatively propagated, tropical crop that is difficult to breed; this species is a good example of >>> ancient clones that demonstrate the value and durability of >>> horizontal resistance, Piper nigrum (Piperaceae), 2n = 4x = 52 hort

black poplar - Schwarzpappel f: it is a pioneer tree species of riparian ecosystems that is threatened with extinction because of the loss of its natural habitat; genetic diversity varies from region to region in Europe; the most unique alleles are identified in the Danube region (Austria), the Rhone region (France), Italy, the Rijn region (The Netherlands), and the Ebro region (Spain), Populus nigra (Salicaceae) fore

black salsify: Scorzonera hispanica (Compositae) hort

black spruce: Picea mariana (Pinaceae) fore

blackwood acacia: Acacia melanoxylon (Leguminosae) fore

bleeding heart - Tränendes Herz n: Dicentra spectabilis (Fumariaceae), 2n=2x=16, shows polytene chromosomes up to 16n in antipodal cells hort >>> Picture 008

blueberry - Blaubeere f: Vaccinium myrtillus (Ericaceae) hort >>> highbush blueberry >>> lowbush blueberry

blue grama grass: a perennial forage grass native to northern America; it grows in and often dominates dry prairies, generally on rocky or clayey soils; the native range of this species extends across the central US from Canada into central Mexico; in Iowa, blue grama is mainly found in the Loess Hills and northwestern counties, but it may be encountered elsewhere as it is sometimes included in native lawn mixes or planted as an ornamental; it is well suited to these uses because it is a short, mat-forming grass, and the attractive flowering branches often take on a bluish tint as they dry in the fall; the flowering heads with 1 to 3 usually curved, densely flowered, one-sided branches that terminate in a spikelet are distinctive; blue grama is palatable and nutritious for livestock and wildlife, providing high quality forage in both the summer and winter; it is frequently planted as a part of rangeland reclamation efforts and is used in roadside plantings and erosion control projects as well, Bouteloua gracilis (Poaceae) agr

blue lupin - Blaue ~, Schmalblättrige Lupine f: Lupinus angustifolius (Leguminosae), 2n = 2x = 48; 2C DNA content ~4,14 pg  agr

blue pea >>> green pea

blue sisal: Agave amaniensis (Agavaceae), 2n = 2x = 60 agr

Bombay hemp >>> cantala

borage: an annual plant, growing 90-120 cm height; it has hairy leaves and bright blue, star-shaped flowers; it originated in Europe, but is now found throughout most of Europe and North America; it is a species traditionaly defined as allogamous; recently it was revealed a high selfing rate although a mechanism of protandry has been confirmed in this plant; studies investigating flower behaviour show that several flowers open every day and that others are also receptive at the same time within a plant; moreover, pollinator behavior, mainly by bees, contributes to the selfing rate because it is demonstrated that these insects visit several flowers in a given plant before flying to other plants; the ecological studies reveal the contribution of geitonogamous pollination to the high selfing rate, Borago officinalis (Boraginaceae) hort

bottle gourd - Flaschenkürbis m: it is the only species of squash, which was grown in Europe before the discovery of America; it is one of the oldest crop plants of the world; its origin seems to be Africa, but now grown in all tropical and subtropical regions; fossil seeds were found in Peru (6.000 – 12.000 B.C.) and Thailand (8.000 B.C.); Lagenaria siceraria ssp. siceraria (Cucurbitaceae), 2n = 2x = 40 hort >>> Picture 012

bougainville - Bougainvilla f: an ornamental plant;member of a tropical genus native to South America and much used throughout the tropics and subtropics as an ornamental; the plant is a woody, climbing shrub with many prominent “flowers” that are really bracts concealing the very small true flowers; these bracts vary in color from bright red, through orange and yellow, to white; Antoine de BOUGAINVILLE (1729-1811) was the first Frenchman to circumnavigate the world; the island of Bougainville, largest of the Solomon Islands in the South Pacific, is named after him; so is the ornamental plant bougainvillea hort

bow-string hemp - Bogenhanf m: Sansevieria spp. (Agavaceae), 2n = 2x = 40 hort

box-tree - Buchsbaum m: Buxus sempervirens (Buxaceae) hort

bramble >>> blackberry

Brassica oleracea: includes following varieties: >>> cabbage (leafy head), >>> kale (non-heading leafy sprout), >>> collards (nonheading leafy sprout), >>> broccoli (immature inflorescence and stalk or peduncle), >>> cauliflower (immature inflorescence), >>> Brussels sprouts (tall-stemmed cabbage with small edible heads or buds along stem), >>> kohlrabi (enlarged, edible, basal stem above the ground); broccoflower a hybrid between broccoli and cauliflower; common cabbage-like vegetables provide an excellent example of remarkable crop improvements that was accomplished by simple long-term selection with no real goal in mind; in the wild, the B. oleracea plant is native to the Mediterranean region of Europe, and is somewhat similar in appearance to a leafy rapeseed plant; soon after the domestication of plants began, people in the Mediterranean region began growing this first ancient "cabbage" plant as a leafy vegetable; because leaves were the part of the plant which were consumed, it was natural that those plants with the largest leaves would be selectively propagated for next year's crop; this resulted in large and larger-leafed plants slowly being developed as the seed from the largest-leafed plants was favored; by the 5^th century BC, continued preference for ever-larger leaved had led to the development of the vegetable we now know as kale; kale is known botanically by the name B. oleracea var. acephala; kale continued to be grown as a leafy vegetable for thousands of years, and is still grown today; later people began to express a preference for those plants with a tight cluster of tender young leaves in the centre of the plant at the top of the stem; because of this preference for plants in which there were a large number of tender leaves closely packed into the terminal bud at the top of the stem, these plants were selected and propagated more frequently; a continued favouritism of these plants for hundreds of successive generations resulted in the gradual formation of a more and more dense cluster of leaves at the top of the plant; eventually, the cluster of leaves became so large, it tended to dominate the whole plant, and the cabbage "head" was available; this progression is thought to have been complete in the 1^st century AD; this plant was named B. oleracea var. capitata; at about the same time, in a part of Europe near modern Germany, kale plants with short fleshy stems were being selected, resulting in fatter and fatter stems; selection on this basis eventually led to the ancestral "cabbage" plant developing into the vegetable known as kohlrabi, B. oleracea var. caulorapa; both cabbage and kohlrabi have been cultivated for about two thousand years; some time in the past thousand years, as a preference developed in southern Europe for eating the immature flower buds of these plants; selection pressure favoring production of plants with large tender flowering heads was imposed by some growers; by the 15^th century, the modern vegetable known as cauliflower (B. oleracea var. botrytis) had developed; about a hundred years later, broccoli had been generated in Italy; because broccoli was developed in Italy, it was named B. oleracea var. italica; in the 18^th century, selections of cabbage plants, which produced a large number of large, tightly packed leafy buds along the main stem were made in Belgium; these became known as Brussels sprouts (B. oleracea var. gemmifera) (Brassicaceae) hort >>> Picture 013

Brazil nut - Brasilnuss f: a giant tree of the Amazon rain forest in South America; a young seedling of this tree takes at least twenty years to bear its first fruit, and may take as long as eighty years; the fruits take a year to ripen; the hard brown seeds are produced in large, thick-walled capsules weighing up to 2.5 kg; seeds contain 65 % to 70 % unsaturated fat and literally burn like a candle, Bertholletia excelsa (Lecythidaceae) hort fore

breadfruit - Brotfrucht(baum) f/m: Artocarpus altilis syn A. communis (Moraceae), 2n = 2x = 56 hort

bread wheat - Brotweizen m >>> wheat

brewing yeast - Brauereihefe f: Saccharomyces cerevisae (Saccharomycetaceae) biot

broad bean - Ackerbohne f: it derived from the Mediterranean region and Asia Minor; it was introduced by the Romans into northern Europe and known as Faba majores; there are types available; the small-seeded type (var. minua) is used as animal feed, while the large-seeded type is used for human consumption (var. major); moreover, there are hybrids between them resulting in a third type (var. equina); the latter is even grown as winter crop in northern France, Vicia faba (Leguminosae), 2n = 2x = 12, 2C DNA content 28.0 pg agr hort >>> Tables 16, 35 >>> Tables 16, 35

broad red clover: Trifolium pratense (Leguminosae) agr

broccoli - Brokkoli m, Spargelkohl m: Brassica oleracea var. italica (Brassicaceae) hort >>> Figure 8

bromegrass: Bromus carinatus (Gramineae) bot agr

broomcorn >>> durra

brown mustard - indischer Senf m : also known as Indian mustard; it originated in India and it has secondary centres of origin in China and southern Russia; this species has the advantage that it can be combine-harvested and, for this reason, has become a major crop in Canada and parts of the northern USA; this area now produces the bulk of the world’s mustard; the plant is self-pollinating and is cultivated as pure lines, Brassica juncea (Brassicaceae), 2n = 4x = 36 agr >>> Figure 8

brunching onion >>> Welsh onion

Brussels sprouts - Rosenkohl m: Brassica oleracea var. gemmifera (Brassicaceae) hort >>> Figure 8

buckbean >>> marsh trefoil

buckwheat - Buchweizen m: Fagopyrum esculentum (Polygonaceae), 2n = 2x = 16 agr >>> Tatary buckwheat >>> notch-seeded buckwheat

bud graft - Knospenveredlung f: the type of graft in which a vegetative bud is removed from its parent plant and used as a scion to be grafted onto a stock; the bud is normally removed with a portion of green bark, which is then inserted under the green bark of the stock; this technique is widely used with fruit trees, such as stone and pome fruits, and citrus, as well as other trees such as rubber, in order to grow a susceptible scion on a resistant rootstock; interspecific and intergeneric grafts are often possible meth hort

buffalo grass - Büffelgras n: Cenchrus cillaris, Buchloe dactyloides (Gramineae) agr

bulb barley - Knollengerste f: Hordeum bulbosum (Gramineae), 2n = 2x, 4x, H^bulH^bul = 14, 28 bot

busy lizzie - Fleissiges Lieschen n: Impatiens walleriana (Balsaminaceae) hort

butter bean >>> Lima bean

butter cabbage: Brassica napus ssp. arvensis (Brassicaceae) hort >>> Figure 8 >>> Picture 013

butterhead (lettuce) - Butterkopf(salat) m/m: Lactuca sativa (Compositae) hort

cabbage, brassicas - Kohl m: any of several cultivated varieties of a plant, Brassica oleracea ssp. capitata, of the mustard family, having a short stem and leaves formed into a edible head, Brassica oleracea (Brassicaceae), 2n = 2x, C’C’ = 18 hort >>> Figure 8 >>> Picture 013

cacao - Kakao(baum) m/m: the cacao plant is a evergreen flowering tree native to wet, warm forests of South and Central America; this tree grows to 40 feet (12 m) tall; after flowering, 10 to 14-inch long red fruit pods develop; in each pod are almond-shaped cacao beans and pulp; chocolate is made from the beans in the pods of the cacao plant, Theobroma cacao (Sterculiaceae), 2n = 2x = 20 hort >>> Figure 87

cactus fig - Kaktusfeige f: edible fruits used for juices, liqueurs, and jams, and as an herb plant, Opuntia stricta var. dilleni (Cactaceae) hort agr

cactus pear - Kaktusbirne f  >>> cactus fig

calabash (gourd): Crescentia cujete (Bignoniaceae) hort >>> bottle gourd >>> Figure 35

calabrese >>> sprouting broccoli

calamint (mill mountain, mountain balm, basil thyme, mountain mint) - Bergminze f: tt is an erect, bushy plant with square stems, rarely more than a foot high, bearing pairs of opposite leaves, which, like the stems, are downy with soft hairs; the flowers bloom in July and August; the plant grows by waysides and in hedges, and is not uncommon, especially in dry places; it may be cultivated as a hardy perennial, propagated by seeds sown outdoors in April, by cuttings of side shoots in cold frames in spring, or by division of roots in October and April; it contains a camphoraceous, volatile, stimulating oil in commonwith the other mints, Calamintha officinalis (Labiatae) hort

calamus: Acorus calamus (Araceae), 2n = 2x, 4x = 18, 36 hort

calceolaria: Calceolaria ssp. (Scrophulariaceae) hort

California bromegrass >>> bromegrass

Canada thistle - Kanadadistel f: Cirsium arvense (Asteraceae) bot agr

Canadian serviceberry (syn juneberry syn shadblow syn serviceberry syn shadblow syn shadbush syn shadbush serviceberry syn sugarplum syn thicket serviceberry) - Felsenbirne f: Amelanchier canadensis syn Amelanchier canadensis var. subintegra (Rosaceae), 2n = 4x = 68 hort >>> Picture 014

canahua: Chenopodium pallidicaule (Chenopodiaceae), 2n = 2x = 18 hort

Canary grass - Kanarengras n: Phalaris canariensis (Gramineae), 2n = 2x, 4x = 14, 28 agr

candytuft: Iberis ssp. (Brassicaceae) hort

canna - Kanna f: Canna edulis (Cannaceae) hort

cantala: Agave cantala (Agavaceae), 2n = 3x = 90 agr

cantaloup >>> cantaloupe

cantaloupe: Cucumis melo (Cucurbitaceae), 2n = 2x = 24, 2C DNA content 2.85-3.89 pg hort

caper (spurge) - Kaper(nstrauch) f/m: Euphorbia lathyris (Euphorbiaceae) hort

caraway (seed) - Kümmel m: Carum carvi (Umbelliferae) hort

cardamom - Kardamom m: this genus is native to Southeast Asia and is a member of the ginger family; the fruits are widely used as a spice, and are particularly prized in Arab countries for adding to coffee; the plants are open-pollinated; a highly aromatic spice derived from the seeds and dried fruits; used in curry powder, seasoning for sausages, incenses, perfumes and medicines, Amomum maximum syn Elettaria cardamommum (Zingiberaceae), 2n = 4x = 48 hort

cardoon - Artischocke f: the plant is native in eastern Mediterranean Regions and closely related to artichoke; because of  its big blue flowers it is not only grown as ornamental but also as vegetable plant; the fleshy leaf base and lower parts of rips are used for salad, which taste similar as black salsify,  Cynara cardunculus (Compositae) hort >>> Picture 006

Caribbean pine - Karibische Kiefer f: Pinus caribaea (Pinaceae) fore

carnation - Nelke f: Dianthus ssp. (Caryophyllaceae) hort

carob - Johannisbrotbaum m: an evergreen tree with pinnately compound leaves (have 2 to 6 pairs of oval leaflets), which can grow to a height of 15 meters and be very handsome; this species is grown around the world primarily as a food crop, for its sweet and nutritious fruits; the fruit  is a pod, technically a legume 15 to 30 centimeters in length and fairly thick and broad; pods are borne on the old stems of the plant on short flower stalks; most carob trees are monoecious, with individual male and female flowers; the dark-brown pods are not only edible, but also rich in sucrose (almost 40 % plus other sugars) and protein (up to 8 %); the pod has vitamin A and B vitamins, and several important minerals; they can be eaten directly by livestock, but carob is mostly known because the pods are ground into a flour that is a cocoa substitute; although this product has a slightly different taste than chocolate, it has only one-third the calories, is virtually fat-free, is rich in pectin, is nonallergenic, has abundant protein, and has no oxalic acid, which interferes with absorption of calcium; carob flour is widely used in health foods for chocolate-like flavoring; it is native to the eastern Mediterranean, probably the Middle East, where it has been in cultivation for at least 4000 years; the plant was well known to the ancient Greeks, who planted seeds of this plant in Greece and Italy; seeds were used to weight gold, hence the word "carat"; the seeds of various plants often were used as weights because their mass reputedly varies so little; carob seeds unusually constant in weight; however, the variability of seeds sampled from a collection of carob trees (CV = 23 %) was close to the average of 63 species reviewed from the literature (CV = 25%); in a perception experiment observers could discriminate differences in carob seed weight of around 5 % by eye demonstrating the potential for humans to greatly reduce natural variation; interestingly, the variability of pre-metrication carat weight standards is also around 5 % suggesting that human rather than natural selection gave rise to the carob myth; MOHAMMED's army ate “kharoub“, and Arabs planted the crop in northern Africa and Spain, along with citrus and olives; Spaniards carried carob to Mexico and South America, and the British took carob to South Africa, India, and Australia; records show that carob was intentionally introduced into the United States in 1854, and the first seedlings were apparently planted in California in 1873; for commercial production cultivars with the finest quality fruits are bud grafted on common stock; carob grows well anywhere that citrus is grown, and it prefers dry climates that receive more than 30 centimeters of rainfall; ideal is Mediterranean type of climate, Ceratonia siliqua (Leguminosae), 2n = 2x = 24 hort

carpet bent: Agrostis stolonifera (Gramineae) bot agr

carrot - Möhre f: Daucus carota (Umbelliferae), 2n = 2x = 18 hort

cashew (~ nut): although it is frost-susceptible, cashew is one of the hardiest of trees and, in warm countries, will grow on poor soils that are unsuitable for other crops; the nuts fetch a high price and the crop is about as valuable as arabica coffee; each nut is borne externally on the end of a fairly large fruit; the fruit is edible, but very astringent, and it can be utilized for the manufacture of alcohol; there is a correlation between total yield and quality, the highest yielding trees producing small nuts of low commercial quality; there is great variation among trees, and there is scope for selection within existing orchards; the cashew nut is attached to a swollen, fleshy stalk (pedicel) called the cashew apple; the outer shell of the "nut" contains the allergen urushiol and can cause a dermatitis reaction similar to that of poison oak and poison ivy, Anacardium occidentale (Anacardiaceae), 2n = 2x = 42 fore hort

cassava: it is a perennial shrub producing a high yield of tuberous roots in 6 months to 3 years after planting; originating in Central and South America, cassava spread rapidly and arrived on the west coast of Africa via the Gulf of Benin and the River Congo at the end of the 16th century and on the east coast via the Reunion Island, Madagascar, and Zanzibar at the end of the 18th century; by the beginning of the 19th century cassava arrived in India, but controlled breeding did not begin until the 1920s;  for many farmers it is the primary staple but also use as a cash crop to produce industrial starches, tapioca, and livestock feeds; world production in 1995, all from developing countries, was about 165.3 million t from about 16.2 million ha; currently, Nigeria, Brazil, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Thailand, and Indonesia are the world's largest producers, Manihot esculenta (Euphorbiaceae), 2n = 2x = 36 hort

castor (bean) - Rizinus m: Ricinus communis (Euphorbiaceae), 2n = 2x = 20 hort >>> Table 16

cat's claw (climber): it lianas up to 15 m or more long, often rooting at the nodes, glabrous or nearly so; leaves drying dark green to nearly black, dimorphic, juvenile plants with small leaflets 1-2 cm long, 0.4-0.8 cm wide, mature leaflets narrowly ovate to lanceolate, 5-16 cm long, 1.2-6.9 cm wide, both surfaces sparsely lepidote, tendril deciduous, 3-forked, 0.1-3.5 cm long, each fork bearing a small horny hook; flowers usually in axillary clusters of 1-3 (-15); calyx cup-like, 0.1-1.8 cm long, glabrous to sparsely lepidote, margins crenulate-undulate; corolla yellow with ca 9 orange lines in the threat, tubular-campanulate, 4.5-10 cm long, 1.2-2.4 cm wide at the mouth, the tube 3.3-6.9 cm long, puberulent within along the throat ridges; capsules drying blackish, linear, flattened, tapering at both ends, 26-95 cm long, 1-2 cm in diameter, inconspicuously lepidote; seeds 1-1.8 cm long, 4.2-5.8 cm wide, the wings membranous, not sharply demarcated from the seed body; it prefers fertile, well drained soils, but appears to tolerate most soil types, particularly alluvial soils; root tubers and stolons form in the plant's second year and can subsequently form at each leaf node while the vine is prostrate; as such, the plant can form a dense mat which carpets the forest floor; the vine climbs standing vegetation and can smother native trees and shrubs, Doxantha unguis-cati (Bignoniaceae) bot biot

cat's-claw creeper >>> cat's claw

catclaw trumpet >>> cat's claw

Caucasian clover >>> Kura clover

Caucasian persimmon: Diospyros lotus (Ebenaceae), 2n = 2x = 30 hort >>> persimmon

cauliflower - Blumenkohl m: Brassica oleracea var. botrytis, (Brassicaceae) hort >>> Figure 8

celeriac >>> celery

celery - Sellerie m: Apium graveolens (Umbelliferae), 2n = 2x = 22 hort >>> Picture 011

camomile - Kamille f >>> chamomile

chamomile - Kamille f: Matricaria chamomilla (Compositae) hort

chard >>> beet

charlock: Sinapis arvensis (Brassicaceae) bot agr

chayote: Sechium edule (Cucurbitaceae), 2n = 2x = 28 hort

cheat >>> rye brome

cherimoya (tree): Annona cherimola (Annonaceae) hort

cherry - Kirsche f: Prunus ssp. (Rosaceae) hort >>> Japanese cherry >>> sour cherry >>> sweet cherry

cherry plum - Kirschpflaume f: Prunus cerasifera (Rosaceae), 2n = 2x, 3x, 4x, 6x, CC = 16, 24, 32, 48 hort

chervil - Kerbel m: is a delicate annual herb, usually used to flavor mild-flavored foods such as poultry, some seafoods, and young vegetables; it is a constituent of the French herb mixture fines herbs, Anthriscus cerefolium (Umbelliferae) bot hort

chess >>> rye brome

chestnut: there are two types of chestnut tree, (a) the sweet or Spanish chestnut and (b) the horse chestnut; the sweet chestnut, native to South Europe (Castanea sativa, 2n = 2x = 24), Asia, and North America, has toothed leaves and edible seeds, and can grow to a height of 21 m, Castanea spp. (Fagaceae) hort fore >>> American chestnut >>> Chinese chestnut >>> Japanese chestnut >>> sweet chestnut

chestnut rose - Walnussfrüchtige Rose f: a decidious shrub growing to 1.2 m by 1.2 m; it is hardy to zone 5; it is in flower in June, and the seeds ripen in August; the scented flowers are hermaphrodite and are pollinated by bees; the plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils, requires well-drained soil and can grow in heavy clay and nutritionally poor soils,  Rosa roxburghii (Rosaceae), 2n = 2x = 14 hort

chia: an annual herb of the genus Salvia native to Mexico; it  grows to 1 m tall, with opposite leaves 4–8 cm long and 3–5 cm broad; its flowers are purple or white and are produced in numerous clusters in a spike at the end of each stem; it was cultivated by the Aztecs in pre-Columbian times, and was so valued that it was given as an annual tribute by the people to the rulers; it is grown commercially for its seed, a food that is very rich in omega-3 fatty acids, since the seeds yield 25-30% extractable oil, mostly α-linolenic acid;  it is still widely used in Mexico and South America, with the seeds ground for nutritious drinks and as a food source; today, chia is grown commercially in its native Mexico, and in Bolivia, Argentina, Ecuador, and Guatemala; in 2008, Australia was the world's largest producer, Salvia hispanica (Lamiaceae), 2n=2x=12 hort

Ch’iao >>> rakkyo

chickling pea - Platterbse f [syn blue sweet pea syn chickling vetch syn Indian pea syn Indian vetch syn white vetch syn almorta syn alverjón (Spain) syn guixa (Catalonia) syn chícharos (Portugal) syn cicerchia (Italy) syn guaya (Ethiopia) syn khesari (India)] : a legume commonly grown for human consumption and livestock feed in Asia and East Africa; it is a particularly important crop in areas that are prone to drought and famine, and is thought of as an "nsurance crop" as it produces reliable yields when all other crops fail;Lathyrus sativus (Leguminosae), 2n= 2x = 14; polytene chromosomes have been observed in ovary, anthers, or immature seed tissues; 2C DNA content 14.4–16.8 pg hort

chickpea - Kichererbse f: also called garbanzo (Spanish), pois chiche (French), Kicher-Erbse (German), chana (Hindi); in Turkey, Romania, Bulgaria, Afghanistan, and adjacent parts of Russia, chickpea is called nakhut or nohut; it also known as gram or Bengal gram (English), which is the most important pulse in India, particularly in the semiarid areas; it is self-pollinating and a herbaceous annual plant which branches from the base; it is almost a small bush with diffused, spreading branches; the plant is mostly covered with glandular or nonglandular hairs but some genotypes do not possess hair; based on seed size and color, cultivated chickpeas are of two types:  (a) macrosperma (kabuli type); the seeds of this type are large (100-seed mass >25 g), round or ramhead, and cream-colored; the plant is medium to tall in height, with large leaflets and white flowers, and contain no anthocyanin, (b) microsperma (desi type); the seeds of this type are small and angular in shape; the seed color varies from cream, black, brown, yellow to green; there are 2-3 ovules/pod but on an average 1-2 seeds/pod are produced; the plants are short with small leaflets and purplish flowers, and contain anthocyanin; the only common cultivated annual species is C. arientinum, although C. soongaricum is also cultivated as a food plant in some parts of Afghanistan, eastern Himalaya and Tibet; the center of diversity lays in western Asia (southeastern Turkey), probably in the Caucasus region/ Minor Asia, Cicer arietinum (Leguminosae), 2n=2x=16 agr

chic(k)ory: native to Europe and West Asia, with large, usually blue, flowers; its long taproot is used dried and roasted as a coffee substitute; as a garden vegetable, grown under cover, its blanched leaves are used in salads, Cichorium intypus (Compositae), 2n = 2x = 18 hort

Chilean strawberry - Chilenische Erdbeere f: Fragaria chiloensis (Rosaceae) hort

chilli: Capsicum annuum (Solanaceae) hort

China aster - Chinesische Aster f: Callistephus hortensis syn C. chinensis (Compositae) hort

Chinese cabbage - Chinakohl m: Brassica olearacea var. chinensis (syn var. pekinensis) (Brassicaceae), 2n = 2x, AA = 20 hort >>> Figure 8 >>> Picture 013

Chinese chestnut - Chinesische Kastanie f: Castanea mollissima (Fagaceae), 2n = 2x = 24 hort

Chinese chive: Allium tuberosum (Alliaceae), 2n = 2x, 4x = 16, 32 hort

Chinese garlic - Chinesischer Knoblauch m: Allium macrostemon (Alliaceae), 2n = 2x-6x = 18-72 hort

Chinese gooseberry: Actinidia chinensis (Actinidiaceae), 2n=2x = 116(?)

China-grass - Chinagras n >>> ramie

Chinese jute - Chinesische Jute f: Abutilon avicennae, A. theophrasii (Malvaceae), 2n = 2x = 42 agr

Chinese leek: Allium ramosum (Alliaceae), 2n = 4x = 32 hort

Chinese mustard >>> pak-choi

Chinese plume grass >>> Chinese silvergrass

Chinese silvergrass: a tall (up to 3 m), densely-bunched grass that invades forest edges, old fields, and other disturbed areas throughout the USA; the leaves are long and slender, upright-to-arcing, with silvery midribs; the leaves have sharp tips and rough margins, the terminal panicle is fan-shaped, long, and silvery to pink in color; it escapes from ornamental plantings where it forms large clumps along disturbed areas displacing native vegetation; the grass is also extremely flammable and increases fire risks of invaded areas; Chinese silvergrass is native to Asia and was introduced into the USA for ornamental purposes, Miscanthus sinensis (Poaceae), 2n = 2x = 38 hort bot

Chinese sugar cane >>> sweet sorghum

Chinese tallow tree: Sapium sebiferum (Euphorbiaceae), 2n = 2x = 36 fore

Chinese wistaria: Wistaria sinensis (Leguminosae) fore hort

chireweed >>> stitchwort

chive - Schnittlauch n/m: a wild plant throughout most of the northern hemisphere, forming perennial clumps about 12 cm high; it is the mildest member of the onion family, without the bitterness of raw onions or the pungency of garlic, the leaves are used as a garnish; this species is an outbreeder and is easy to breed; chives can be propagated either vegetatively or from true seed; chives do not have well-formed bulbs but they do form tillers to produce dense clumps of plant, Allium schoenoprasum (Alliaceae), 2n = 2x, 3x, 4x = 16, 24, 32; 2C DNA content 16.6 pg hort

chokeberry, black - Apfelbeere f: there are two to three species of deciduous shrubs in the family Rosaceae, native to eastern North America, most commonly found in wet woods and swamps; chokeberries are cultivated as ornamental plants and also because they are very high in antioxidant pigment compounds, like anthocyanins; the name comes from the astringency of the fruits which are inedible when raw; the berries are used to make wine, jam, syrup, juice, soft spreads, tea and tinctures; fruits are eaten by birds which then disperse the seeds in their droppings; chokeberries are often mistakenly called chokecherries which is the common name for Prunus virginiana; further adding to the ambiguity, there is a cultivar of Prunus virginiana named “Melanocarpa”, easily confused with Aronia melanocarpa; chokeberries are naturally understory and woodland edge plants, and grow well when planted under trees; they are resistant to drought, insects, pollution, and disease; several cultivars have been developed for garden planting, including A. arbutifolia “Brilliant” (2n = 2x,4x, = 34,68), selected for its striking fall leaf color; A. melanocarpa “Viking”, “Aron” (tetraploid), “Königshof", and “Nero” were selected for larger fruit suitable for jam-making, and because they are self-fertile only one plant is needed to produce fruits; hybrids of Sorbus aucuparia or S. aria × Aronia melanocarpa or A. arbutifolia were produced for different end-uses; Aronia melanocarpa (Rosaceae), 2n = 2x = 34 hort

christophine >>> chayote

chumberas >>> pencas

cibol >>> Welsh onion

cilantro >>> coriander

cinchona: Cichona ssp. (Rubiaceae) hort fore

cinnamon - Zimt(baum) m/m: the spice cinnamon, consists of the dried green bark (called quills) of an open-pollinated, evergreen tree, which is indigenous to Sri Lanka (Ceylon), and is propagated by seed; selection within existing crops should lead to improved clones and vegetative propagation; cinnamon and cassia, the so-called “spices of life”, together constitute one of the most widely used groups of species; cinnamon is a very ancient crop and was being shipped by Austronesian people to Madagascar, and from there it was taken to Africa and, eventually, to ancient Rome; the Portuguese conquered Ceylon in 1536 and gained a monopoly in the cinnamon trade; the Dutch conquered them, and the monopoly, in 1656; then the British conquered the Dutch, and won the monopoly, in 1796; in the 19^th century, commercial production commenced in various parts of the world, and the monopoly was broken, but the Sri Lanka cinnamon remains the best; distillation of the wood of C. camphora produces camphor, Cinnamomum camphora (Lauraceae), 2n = 2x = 24 hort fore

citron - Zitrone(nbaum) f/m: Citrus ssp. (Rutaceae), 2n = 2x = 18 hort >>> hesperidia

citrus >>> citron

clove >>> carnation

clove: Eugenia caryophyllis (Myrtaceae) hort

clove-pink >>> carnation

clover - Klee m: it is an important fodder crop, sometimes sown in mixtures with grasses; clovers occur commonly in natural grasslands in humid temperate areas, and in tropical highlands; there are 10 species that are considered agriculturally important: >>> Egyptian or Berseem clover (annual, T. alexandrinum), >>> Caucasian or Kura clover (perennial, T. ambiguum), >>> Yellow suckling clover (annual, T. dubium), >>> Strawberry clover (perennial, T. fragiferum), >>> Alsike clover (perennial, T. hybridum), >>> Crimson clover (annual, T. incarnatum), >>> Red clover (perennial, T. pratense), >>> White clover (perennial, T. repens), >>> Persian clover (annual, T. resupinatum); >>> Subterranean clover (annual, T. subterraneum); the clovers are important because of their nitrogen fixation with Rhizobium root nodules; with only minor exceptions, the annual species are self-compatible while the perennial species are self-incompatible; pollination is commonly done by insects, Trifolium ssp. (Leguminoseae) agr >>> Picture 013

club wheat: Triticum compactum (Gramineae) >>> wheat

cluster bean >>> guar

clustered clover: Trifolium glomeratum (Leguminosae) agr >>> Picture 013

cobnut: syn hazel nut syn cobnut syn filbert; this species shows considerable diversity and some taxonomists have suggested additional specific names, Corylus ssp.(Corylaceae), 2n = 2x = 22; 2C DNA content 1.0 pg hort

coca: Erythroxylon coca (Erythroxylaceae) hort fore

cocksfoot: three levels of polyploidy occur: diploid, tetraploid, and hexaploid; tetraploids are the most common and generally distributed forms; it was distributed from Europe to North America, Australia, and New Zealand; Dactylis glomerata (Gramineae), 2n = 4x = 28 agr

cockspur: Echinochloa crus-galli (Gramineae) agr

cocoa >>> cacao

coconut: Cocos nucifera (Palmae), 2n = 2x = 32 fore hort

cocozelle: Cucurbita pepo (Cucurbitaceae), 2n = 2x = 40 hort

coc(o)yam >>> tanier

coffee (Arabian) - Kaffee(strauch) m/m: the coffee plant is a small tree, but is pruned into a large bush to make harvesting easier; it produces sweet-smelling white flowers; these are followed by green berries which turn red when ripe; each berry contains two seeds, which are processed to make coffee for drinking, Robusta coffee (Coffea canephora), Coffea arabica (Rubiaceae), 2n = 4x, AABB = 44 hort

colocynth: Colocynthis citrullus syn Citrullus vulgaris (Cucurbitaceae); endopolyploidy of 24-384n was observed hort

Colorado spruce: Picea pungens(Pinaceae) fore

columbine: Aquilegia ssp. (Ranunculaceae) hort >>> Picture 014

common bulb onion >>> onion

common chickling: Lathyrus sativus (Leguminosae) agr

common chicory >>> chicory

common corncockle: Agrostemma githago (Caryophyllaceae) bot agr

common grape >>> European grape

common horsetail - Ackerschachtelhalm m: Equisetum arvense (Equisetaceae) bot agr

common milkweed: Asclepias syriaca (Asclepiadaceae) bot agr

common millet - Hirse f: Panicum miliaceum (Gramineae), 2n = 4x = 36 agr

common onion - Küchenzwiebel f >>> onion

common osier - Korweide f >>> basket willow

common petunia - Petunie f: Petunia hybrida (Solanaceae) hort

common velvet grass: Holcus lanatus (Gramineae) bot agr

common vetch - Wicke f: Vicia sativa ssp. sativa (Leguminosae), 2n = 2x = 12, 2C DNA content 4 pg agr

cone wheat >>> rivet wheat >>> wheat

Congo pea >>> pigeonpea

coracan millet >>> finger millet

coriander - Koriander m: Coriandrum sativum (Umbelliferae) hort >>> Picture 011

cork oak - Korkeiche f: Quercus suber (Fagaceae) fore

corktree: Phellodendron ssp. (Rutaceae) fore agr

corn - Mais m >>> maize

corn bindweed: Convolvulus tricolor (Convolvulaceae) bot agr

corn flower - Kornblume f: Centaurea cyanus (Asteraceae) bot agr

corn salad: Valerianella olitoria syn V. locusta (Valerianaceae) hort

corn thistle >>> Canada thistle >>> creeping thistle >> cursed thistle

corn toadflax: Linaria arvensis (Scrophulariaceae) bot agr

cos lettuce: a type of salad showing a more or less dense head and bag-like habit; often the spoon-like leaves tend to grow lax; therefore the leaves were bound together by strings in order to produce more soft and leached leaves; beside a variety with pale green leaves grown in some regions of Germany and named “Kasseler Strünkchen”, there are also varieties with dark red leaves (“Romaine rouge”) or with red spotted leaves (in Austria called “Forellensalat” = salmon salad), Lactuca capitata var. romana (Compositae) hort

costmary (alecost) - Marienblatt n, Frauenminze f, Bibelblatt n: a herb which has been grown for many centuries and is possibly native to Eastern Europe and Central Asia; it has soft, slightly hairy, fine toothed, pale green leaves upto 30 cm long, which have a scent of balsam or mint; it bears clusters of small, white, rayed flowers with yellow centres, Balsamita major syn Balsamita major var. tanacetoides syn Chrysanthemum balsamita syn Chrysanthemum balsamita var. tanacetoides syn Pyrethrum majus syn Tanacetum balsamita(Compositae) hort

cotton - Baumwolle f: it belongs to a genus with 33 diploid and 6 allotetraploid species native to the tropical and subtropical regions of the world; the cultivars, consisting almost entirely of the allotetraploids, are grown in the warmer regions for their seed and fiber; Gossypium ssp. (Malvaceae), 2n = 4x, AADD = 52 agr >>> short American staple cotton

cottonwood >>> poplar

couch-grass >>> Agropyron

cow bean: Phaseolus unguiculata ssp. sinensis syn Vigna unguiculata (Leguminosae), 2n = 2x = 22 hort >>> pulse

cowpea >>> cow bean

crambe: Crambe abyssinica (Brassicaceae) agr

creeping bentgrass: one of the most adapted bentgrass species for use on golf course fairways and putting greens because of its high tolerance to low mowing height; it is a highly outcrossing allotetraploid species, Agrostis stolonifera (Gramineae), 2n = 4x, A₂ A₂A₃A₃ = 28 bot agr

creeping thistle >>> Canada thistle

crested dogstail: Cynosurus cristatus (Gramineae) bot agr

crested wheatgrass: Agropyron cristatum (Gramineae) bot agr

cress - Kresse f: Lepidium sativum (Brassicaceae), 2n = 2x, 4x = 16, 32 hort

crimson clover - Inkarnatklee m: Trifolium incarnatum (Leguminosae), 2n = 2x = 14 agr >>> Picture 013

crisphead (lettuce): Lactuca sativa (Compositae) hort

crowfoot: Ranunculus ssp. (Ranunculaceae) bot agr

crown imperial: Fritillaria imperialis (Liliaceae) hort

cucumber - Gurke f: Cucumis sativus (Cucurbitaceae), 2n = 2x = 14, 2C DNA content 1.37-2.48 pg hort

cucumber tree >>> bilimbi

cucurbits: Cucumis ssp., Citrullus ssp., Cucurbita ssp., Lagenaria ssp. (Cucurbitaceae), 2n = 2x = 40; endopolyploidy of 24-384n was observed hort

cucuzzi >>> bottle gourd

cumin: the seed comes from a plant of the parsley family; a small, delicate annual, it grows to a height of about 25 cm; the spicy seeds are boat-shaped, ridged, and brownish green in color, cumin: similar in appearance to caraway seeds, cumin seeds do not have the licorice flavor of the former spice; it is used in curries, and occasionally in snack foods, Cuminum cyminum (Umbelliferae), 2n = 2x = 14 hort

cup plant - Durchwachsene Silphie f: the perennial, herbaceous plant is up to 3-4 m tall and native to prairies of North America and Canada, the leaf pairs form cups around a square stem; there are about 33 attracts birds, butterflies, species of Silphium recognized, which are divided into five sections (Composita, Dentata, Integrifolia, Laciniata, and Perfoliata) based upon leaf, stem, capitulum, and phyllary morphology; it hummingbirds and honeybees; the plant might hold the promise of being not only a new source crop for cellulosic ethanol, but also a way to help capture and store carbon; not only in U.S.A. but also in Europe and other countries breeding activities are initiated in order to develop the wild into a bioenergy crop plant, Silphium perfoliatum var. connatum and var. perfoliatum (Asteraceae), 2n = 2x = 14 hort agr

curled lettuce >>> cutting lettuce

curly kale >>> kale

cursed thistle >>> Canada thistle

cuscuta (syn dodder syn strangle-weed syn hellbind hailweed syn devil’s hair): these species belong to a mono-generic family in which all members are parasitic on other plants; cuscuta consists mainly of yellow-red, slender, vine-like stems with vestigial leaves, and the plants lack chlorophyll entirely; it can occasionally be an agricultural nuisance, Cuscuta ssp. (Cuscutaceae) phyt agr

cush-cush yam: is the only cultivated yam that is indigenous to the New World, Dioscorea trifida (Dioscoreaceae) hort >>> yam

custard apple: Annona cherimolia (Annonaceae), 2n = 2x = 14 hort

cutting lettuce: Lactuca sativa var. crispa or var. secalina (Compositae) hort

cylamen: Cyclamen persicum (Primulaceae), 2n = 2x = 48 (AA)  hort >>> Picture 014

daffodil >>> narcissus

dahlia - Dahlie f: Dahlia pinnata (Asteraceae) hort

daikon: Raphanus sativus convar. sativus syn Raphanus raphanistroides (Brassicaceae) hort

daimyo oak: Quercus dentata (Fagaceae), 2n = 2x, 4x = 24, 48 fore

daisy fleabane: Erigeron ssp. (Compositae) bot agr

Damask rose: Damask roses are grown in several European and Asiatic countries for rose oil production, Rosa damascena (Rosaceae), 2n = 2x = 14 hort

Damson plum: Prunus insititia (Rosaceae), 2n = 6x = 48 hort

dandelion - Löwenzahl m: Taraxacum ssp. (Compositae) hort bot agr

darnel ryegrass - Taumellolch m:  a species of ryegrass, formerly a common weed among cereal crops; often associated with weed wheat and barley; e.g., in south-western Ethiopia, where people maintain traditional ways of subsistence by growing various kinds of crops and livestock by conducting sustainable shifting cultivation, man's impacts, especially cereal cultivation, on the diversity of darnel was surveyed; the grains of darnel are either awned or awnless, and the awnless is dominant over the awned; awned form was found in emmer wheat, and awnless one was generally associated with bread, macaroni and rivet wheat; grain cleaning is done by winnowing and subsequent hand removal of contaminants; emmer wheat has non-free threshing grains, and the other three crops have free threshing grains; awned darnel's grain morphology is similar to that of emmer wheat grain, and the awnless darnel grain resembles the free threshing grains of bread, macaroni and rivet wheat; separating awned darnel grains from emmer wheat grains is difficult, as is separating awnless grains from free threshing wheat grains; the free threshing wheat grains contaminated with darnel grains are sown in the emmer wheat field because the boundaries between the two fields are unclear; crop seed exchange and contamination of crop grains with darnel grains during storage or seeding of crops lead to unintended artificial gene flow of darnel and consequently conserve the genetic diversity of darnel, Lolium temulentum (Gramineae) bot agr

dasheen: Colocasia esculenta var. globulifera (Araceae), 2n = 3x = 42 hort

Dasypyrum villosum (Gramineae) bot agr

date palm - Dattelpalame f: a palm tree; it has a sub-tropical, semi-arid origin in the Middle East; this is possibly the oldest plant domestication in the world; the plant is dioecious and breeding is exceptionally difficult; propagation by seeds is a waste of time, because of the loss of fruit quality, and vegetative propagation with basal suckers is essential; the quality of the date fruit is affected by metaxenia; a  new-encounter killer disease “Bayoud disease” (Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. albidinis) is spreading inexorably from Morocco eastwards; the female tree produces the brown oblong fruit, dates, in bunches weighing 9-11 kg; dates are an important source of food in the Middle East, being rich in sugar; they are dried for export; the tree also supplies timber and materials for baskets, rope, and animal feed; the most important species is native to northern Africa, Southwest Asia, and parts of India, it grows up to 25 m high; a single bunch can contain as many as 1,000 dates; their juice is made into a kind of wine, Phoenix dactylifera (Palmae), 2n = 2x = 36; 2C DNA content 1.9 pg fore hort

daylily: Hemerocallis ssp. (Liliaceae) bot hort

deadnettle: Lamium ssp. (Lamiaceae) bot agr

derris: Derris elliptica (Leguminosae), 2n = 2x = 22 agr

desi chickpea >>> chickpea

dill - Dill m: Anethum gravolens (Umbelliferae) hort

Dinkel wheat - Dinkelweizen m: Triticum spelta (Gramineae) >>> wheat

Dolichos lablab >>> lablab

Douglas fir: one of some six species of coniferous evergreen tree belonging to the pine family; the most common is Pseudotsuga menziesii, native to western North America and east Asia; it grows up to 60–90 m in height, has long, flat, spirally-arranged needles and hanging cones, and produces hard, strong timber; P. glauca has shorter, bluish needles and grows to 30 m in mountainous areas, Pseudotsuga ssp. (Pinaceae), 2n = 2x = 26 fore hort

doum palm: a native palm tree of Upper Egypt, Sudan, Kenya and Tanzania; it was considered sacred by ancient Egyptians; seeds of doum nuts have been found in the pharohs' tombs; the doum palm, also known as the gingerbread palm, grows a red-orange, apple-sized fruit that tastes like gingerbread; the fruit's hard, white nut is used to make buttons; rind from doum nuts is used to make molasses; the palm's leaves are used to make mats, bind parcels and writing paper; the doum palm can reach heights of 6-9 m, Hyphaene thebaica (Palmae)

doura >>> durra

drooping brome: Bromus tectorum (Gramineae) bot agr

durian: Durio zibethinus (Bombacaceae), 2n = 2x = 14 fore

durra: also known as milo, kafir, feterita, kaoliang, mtata, sorgo, jola, jawa, guinea corn, broomcorn, and cholam; it is grown mainly in Africa, India, China, and USA; is an open-pollinated, short-day plant; hybrid varieties have been produced in USA; a grass, whose seeds are used to make a flour and as cattle feed; it is an important food crop in Africa, Central America, and southern Asia and is the fifth major cereal crop grown in the world; the largest producer is the USA; it originated in eastern Africa and first diverged from the wild varieties in Ethiopia 5,000 years ago; it is well adapted to grow in hot arid or semi-arid areas; the many subspecies are divided into four groups: (a) grain sorghums, (b) grass sorghums (for pasture and hay), (c) sweet sorghums (produce sorghum syrups), and (d) broom corn (for brooms and brushes), Sorghum vulgare or S. bicolor (Gramineae) agr

durum wheat - Durumweizen m, Hartweizen m: an ancient wheat grown since Egyptian times; a wheat used to make bread and other bakery products; the hard, flinty kernels are specially ground and refined to obtain semolina, a granular product used in making pasta items such as macaroni and spaghetti; most durum wheats are grown in Mediterranean countries, Russia, North America, and Argentina, Triticum durum (Gramineae), 2n = 4x = 28 agr >>> wheat

Dutch turnip >>> stubble turnip

dwarf bean >>> French bean

dwarf French bean: Phaseolus vulgaris var. nanus (Leguminosae) hort

dwarf sisal: Agave angustifolia (Agavaceae), 2n = 2x = 60 agr

dye amaranth: Amaranthus cruentus (Amaranthaceae), 2n = 2x = 32 hort

dyer’s alcanet >>> dyer’s alkanet >>> alkanna

dyer’s chamomile: Anthemis tinctoria (Compositae), 2n = 2x = 18 hort >>> Picture 014

earth-smoke - Erdrauch m >>> fumitory

Eastern gamagrass: it is a native grass of America with a gene pool that has a lot to offer maize, including resistance to cold and insects, as well as tolerance to drought and flood; it can be hybridized with maize and it is used for introgression experiments,Tripsacum dactyloides(Gramineae) bot agr

Eastern white pine: Pinus strobus (Pinaceae) fore

East-India arrowroot: Curcuma ssp. (Zingiberaceae) hort

eddo >>> taro

eddoe >>> taro

eggapple >>> eggplant

eggplant - Eierfrucht f: also known as >>> aubergine or brinjal, originated in India and is the only important Old World cultivated species of the family Solanaceae; the crop is cultivated for its fruit which is eaten as a vegetable;. it is open-pollinated and hybrid varieties are useful, Solanum melongena (Solanaceae), 2n = 2x = 24; 2C DNA content 1.9 pg hort

Egyptian clover - Alexanderinerklee m: Trifolium alexandrinum (Leguminosae) agr >>> Picture 013

Egyptian tree onion >>> tree onion

einkorn - Einkornweizen m: one-grained wheat, so called because it has a single seed per spikelet; a wheat cultivated since stone age times, T. monococcum, T. boeoticum (Gramineae), 2n = 2x, AA = 14, 2C DNA content 14 pg agr >>> wheat

elephant garlic >>> Levant garlic

elephant grass - Elefantengras n: also known as Napier grass is so-called because it grows tall enough to hide an African elephant; it occurs wild in the general area of Uganda; it is a highly productive fodder, and it provides an excellent mulch; it is usually propagated by stem cuttings of 3-4 nodes; seed is produced abundantly but is difficult to collect, Pennisetum purpureum (Gramineae), 2n = 4x = 28 agr

eleusine >>> finger millet

Elymus (wildrye, wheatgrass): plants are hermaphroditic, caespitose or rhizomatous, perennial; culms are erect or ascending or decumbent, glabrous or scabrous; the internodes are hollow, or solid, terete; leaves are basal and cauline, not distinctly distichous; sheaths are terete, margins open or connate; auricles may be present or absent; ligules are membranous; blades flat or folded or involute, linear, lax or stiff; spikes or spicate racemes (erect or drooping), bilateral or unilateral or not distinctly bilateral; the rachis is persistent or disarticulating; the pedicel is short when present; spikelets are solitary or paired or ternate or in clusters at inflorescence nodes, divergent or ascending or appressed, laterally compressed, disarticulation above the glumes, awned or awnless, sessile or short pedicellate; it shows 4-10 florets, they are reduced at apex; the callus is glabrous or hairy; the rachilla is not extending beyond upper floret; there are 2 glumes, 1-11-veined, opposite or displaced relative to floret position, usually slightly unequal, subulate or not subulate, shorter or longer than first floret, awned or awnless; lemmas are 5-veined, membranous to chartaceous to coriaceous, glabrous or hairy; apex entire (acuminate to obtuse), awned or awnless; awns when present apical; paleas 2-veined, awnless, glabrous or hairy; there are 3 stamens; the anthers are yellow; caryopses are adnate to lemma and/or palea or free from lemma and palea, longitudinally grooved or not grooved, dorsiventrally compressed; the base chromosome number is x = 7; the genus consists of about 120 species; these grassland and shrubland species are adapted to temperate climates with many important forage and weedy taxa; the genus Elymus is closely related to some important cereal crops and serves as potential alien genetic resources for the improvement of these crops; Elymus ssp. (Gramineae) bot agr

emmer wheat - Emmerweizen m: two-grained wheat; grown since the Neolithic times, Triticum dicoccum, T. dicoccoides (Gramineae), 2n = 4x, AABB = 28, 2C DNA content 25 pg agr >>> wheat

endive - Endivie(nsalat) f/m: leaves used as garnish and herb, C. intybus is chickory, whose dried and roasted roots are used for blending with coffee; the young shoots of C. endiva are endives, and are used as a vegetable, mainly in salads, Cichorium endivia et ssp. (Compositae), 2n = 2x, 3x = 18, 27 hort >>>chickory

Engelmann spruce: Picea engelmannii (Pinaceae) fore

English marigold: Calendula officinalis (Compositae) hort bot

English ryegrass: Lolium perenne (Gramineae) agr

estragon (French tarragon, cooking tarragon) - Estragon m: tarragon is a green, glabrous perennial shrub; its branched root system with runners produces erect, bushy-branched stems from 60-70 cm high; the lower leaves are ternate, the upper leaves lanceolate to linear and small-toothed or entire, the small, drooping whitish-green or yellow flowers are almost globular and bloom from May to June in terminal panicles; it contains components common to many herbs that are routinely consumed without reported adverse effects; Artemisia dracunculus var. sativa (Compositae) hort >>> Picture 014

Ethiopian mustard - ethiopischer Senf m: seed oil of current zero erucic-acid germplasm of Ethiopian mustard is characterized by a low concentration of oleic acid and high concentrations of linoleic and linolenic acids; this crop is confined to the highlands of northeast Africa where it is grown for oil, which is locally known as “noug oil”, Brassica carinata (Brassicaceae), 2n = 4x = 34 agr >>> Figure  8

European elymus >>> lyme grass

European grape - Weintraupen f pl, Wein m: most of the 7,000 of grapevine cultivars can be divided into two groups, red and white, based on the presence or absence of anthocyanin in the berry skin (50 % of the varieties are white ones); it has been found from genetic experiments that the presence of red color is controlled by a single locus; a regulatory gene, VvMYBA1, which can activate anthocyanin biosynthesis in a transient assay, was shown not to be transcribed in white berries due to the presence of a retrotransposon in the promoter; the berry color locus comprises two very similar genes, VvMYBA1 and VvMYBA2, located on a single bacterial artificial chromosome; either gene can regulate color in the grape berry; the white berry allele of VvMYBA2 is inactivated by two non-conservative mutations, one leads to an amino acid substitution and the other to a frame shift resulting in a smaller protein; transient assays showed that either mutation removed the ability of the regulator to switch on anthocyanin biosynthesis; VvMYBA2 sequence analyses, together with marker information, confirm that 55 white cultivars all contain the white berry allele, but not red berry alleles; it seems that all extant white cultivars of grape vines have a common origin, and that rare mutational events occurring in two adjacent genes were essential for the genesis of the white grapes used to produce the white wines and white table grapes, Vitis vinifera ssp. sativa (Vitaceae), 2n = 2x = 38 hort >>> Schiave

European plum - Europäische Pflaume f: Prunus domestica (Rosaceae) hort

evening primrose - Nachtkerze f: a typical ruderal plant in Europe, although its origin is Peru; closely related is the species O. missouriensis, native in southern regions of North America; despite the nice smell, in the past the roots were used as vegetable; they are edible from autumn until May; later they become woody; it has in recent years made the transition from being a wild flower and cottage garden plant to an established agricultural crop; its value lies in the seed oil which contains at maturity approximately 7-10% gamma linolenic acid (GLA), an essential fatty acid with proven value as a nutrient and pharmaceutical in humans; there are breeding activities to develop it as an oil seed crop; this seed may contain up to 30 % of oil, Oenothera biennis (Oenotheraceae), 2n = 2x = 8 hort  >>> Picture 3

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fall rose >>> China aster

false >>> bastard indigo

false acacia >>> locust tree

false goat's beard: Astilbe ssp. (Saxifragaceae) hort

false flax: Camelina sativa (Brassicaceae) agr

false indigo >>> bastard indigo

false saffron >>> safflower

feijoa: Feijoa sellowiana (Myrtacaceae) hort

fennel - Fenchel m: Foeniculum vulgare (Apiaceae) hort >>> Picture 004

fenugreek - Bockshornklee m: an erect annual plant to 50 cm, which may be branched; the leaves are trifoliate and the leaflets oblong-lanceolate, to 5 cm long; it was a fodder of very ancient cultivation in Mediterranean countries; it is also a highly aromatic plant used as a pot-herb, spice; it is widely grown in India and neighboring countries as a flavoring, and in North Africa and Western Asia as a fodder and spice; its seeds are used as a component of curry powder in India; Trigonella foenum-graecum (Leguminosae), 2n = 2x = 16 hort

field bean >>> broad bean

field brome: Bromus arvensis (Gramineae) bot agr

field horsetail >>> common horsetail

field pea - Felderbse f: Pisum sativum ssp. arvense (Leguminosae) agr

field pink: Dianthus campestris (Caryophyllaceae) bot agr

field salad - Feldsalat m, Rapunzel f >>> corn salad

field scabios: Knautia arvensis (Dipsacaceae) bot agr

field speedwell: Veronica agnestis (Scrophulariaceae) bot agr

fig - Feige(nbaum) f/m: plants of the fig family may range in size from small shrubs to trees reaching 40 m or more; they are distributed throughout the tropics; the edible fig originated in West Asia and has been cultivated for at least 6,000 years; it is now grown mainly in Italy, Turkey, Greece, and California; the fruit may be eaten fresh or preserved and dried; figs are pollinated by parasitic wasps, Ficus carica (Moraceae), 2n = 2x = 26 hort >>> SCHLEGEL (2007)

filbert: Corylus maxima (Corylaceae), 2n = 2x = 22 hort

finger millet: also known as African millet, as well as wimbi, bullo, telebun, and other vernacular names; an important crop in the drier areas of Africa and India, although sorghum and bulrush millet are more drought-resistant; it has a wide range of uses as flour, as an additive to various dishes, and for brewing. In a dry climate, it stores well for up to ten years; it is self-pollinated and there are innumerable cultivars in both Africa and India, Eleusine coracan ssp. coracan (Gramineae), 2n = 4x = 36 agr

Finnish tansy: Tanacetum vulgare (Asteraceae), 2C DNA content 8.86 pg bot hort

flax (linseed) - Flachs m, Lein m: it is an annual dicot plant, 40 to 80 cm in height; the fruit is a capsule containing less than 10 seeds whose oil content varies from 35 to 45 %; it is cultivated either as a textile plant, for the fibers contained in the stem, or for its oleo-protinaceous seeds; winter flax varieties, with their procumbent growth at the beginning of their development, are differentiated from spring flax varieties, that grow erect and are sensitive to cold; textile flax has been cultivated in Europe since the Middle Ages, but has declined since the appearance of cotton and synthetic fibers; the long stem is slightly branched at the top and is rich in fibers; planting occurs in spring; harvesting occurs by uprooting when the capsules are yellow-green; retting permits decomposition of cements which bind the fibers; flax seeds produce an oil used for industrial purposes and are also used as animal feed; sown in March, the oil-yielding flax is harvested when the seeds are mature, drying may be necessary; this crop is found in France, Germany and Great Britain; flax is historically interesting in that H.H. FLOR, in 1940, discovered the gene-for-gene relationship while working on flax rust (Melampsora lini) in Illinois (USA), Linum usitatissimum (Linaceae), 2n = 2x = 30, 2C DNA content 1.4 pg agr >>> Figure 6

fleur-de-lys >>> iris

fodder beet - Futterrübe f: Beta vulgaris var. crassa (Chenopodiaceae) agr

fodder radish: Raphanus sativus var. oleiformis (Brassicaceae) agr

fonio >>> hungry rice

foxglove - Fingerhut m: Digitalis ssp. (Scrophulariaceae) hort  >>> Picture 009

foxtail lily: Eremurus ssp. (Liliaceae) hort bot

foxtail millet: this cereal is used as human food in sub-tropical Europe and northern Africa; It is also important in India, Japan, and China; in Russia, it is used for brewing beer, in UK, it is used as birdseed, and in USA it is grown for hay and silage; both self-pollination and cross-pollination occurs, Setaria italica (Gramineae), 2n = 2x, AA = 18 bot agr

freesia - Fresie f: Freesia ssp. (Iridaceae) hort

French bean: Phaseolus vulgaris (Leguminosae), 2n = 2x = 22 hort >>> pulse

fuchsia - Fuchsie f: Fuchsia ssp. (Onagraceae) hort >>> Picture 004

fumitory: Fumaria ssp. (Papaveraceae) bot agr

gambier: Uncaria gambir (Rubiaceae) hort

garden aster >>> China aster

garden balsam: Impatiens balsamina (Balsaminaceae), 2n = 2x = 14 hort

garden beet >>> red beet

garden cress >>> cress

garden hydrangea: Hydrangea hortensis (Saxifragaceae) hort

gardenia: Gardenia ssp. (Rubiaceae) hort

garden leek: leeks are tetraploids and set seed freely, while”elephant garlic” is a hexaploid and is sterile; both are open-pollinated crops; Allium porrum or A. ampeloprasum (Alliaceae), 2n = 4x = 32; 2C DNA content 63.2-65.3 pg hort >>> Picture 010

garden lettuce >>> butterhead

garden orach >>> mountain spinach

garden pansy: Viola ssp. (Violaceae) hort

garden pea - Erbse f: despite its importance as a traditional crop plant, the pea has a history as an organism used for genetic studies going as far back as MENDEL (1866); pea became also later a subject of intensive genetic studies, and thus one of the best genetically investigated plant; it has led to the identification and symbolization of more than 600 classical genes, in addition to about 2.500 genes identified and preserved in collections; particularly, pea mutants were used in breeding; Pisum sativum ssp. hortense (Leguminosae), 2n = 2x = 14 hort >>> fasciata mutant >>> Figure 88 >>> Table 16

garden thyme - Thymian m: Thymus vulgaris (Labiatae) hort

garlic - Knoblauch m: a perennial bulb of the onion family; it grows about 30 cm high, and has pale spherical flowers; it has been used since ancient Egyptian times as a herb; it never sets seed, and it can be propagated vegetatively only; the flowers sometimes produce small bulbils, which can be used for propagation, but these are also vegetative and are not the result of pollination; the formation of flowers and seeds is a major physiological sink that severely reduces the yield of vegetative parts of the plant, Allium sativum (Alliaceae), 2n = 2x = 16; 2C DNA content 35.7 pg hort

gerbera - Gerbera f: Gerbera jamesonii (Compositae) hort

German chamomile: Matricaria chamomilla (Compositae) bot hort agr

germander speedwell: Veronica chamaedrys (Scrophulariaceae) bot agr

gherkin >>> cucumber

giant swamp taro: Cyrtosperma chamissonis syn C. edule, C. merkusii (Araceae), 2n = 2x = 26 hort

giant taro: Alocasia macrorhiza syn A. indica (Araceae), 2n = 2x = 28 hort

gillyflower: Matthiola ssp. (Brassicaceae) hort

ginger - Ingwer m: Zingiber officinale (Zingiberaceae), 2n = 2x = 22 hort

gingerbread palm >>> doum palm

globe artichoke >>> artichoke

Goa bean: Psophocarpus ssp. (Leguminosae) hort

goat grass >>> Aegilops

goldenberry >>> Peruvian groundcherry

golden chamomile >>> dyer’s chamomile

golden gram >>> mung bean

golden oatgrass: Trisetum flavescens (Gramineae) bot agr

gold-of-pleasure: an annual or biennial forb/herb utilized for oil production; classified as a secondary crop plant, Camelina sativa (Brassicaceae) agr

gombo >>> okra

good king Henry: a herbaceous perennial plant native in Europe; it shows high winterhardiness and grows even in alpine regions; the arrow-shaped leaves were used similar as spinach; in England, it is rarely grown as substitute for asparagus, particularly in early spring when young sprouts prepared like asparagus, Chenopodium bonus-henricus (Chenopodiaceae) bot agr  >>>  Picture 007

gooseberry: Ribes uva-crispa (Grossulariaceae), 2n = 2x = 16 hort >>> Picture 009

goosy grass >>> drooping brome

grape - Wein(rebe) m/f: Vitis ssp. (2n = 2x = 38), Muscadinia ssp. (2n = 2x = 40) (Vitaceae), hort >>> Amur grape >>> Berlandieri grape >>> European grape >>> Picture 010, 012

grapefruit - Pampelmuse f: round, yellow, juicy, sharp-tasting fruit of the evergreen grapefruit tree; the tree grows up to 10 m and has dark shiny leaves and large white flowers; the large fruits grow in grapelike clusters (hence the name); grapefruits were first established in the West Indies and subsequently cultivated in Florida by the 1880s; they are now also grown in Israel and South Africa; some varieties have pink flesh; it is of relatively recent origin and is thought to be a chance hybrid between two otherCitrus spp.; the name “grapefruit” was apparently used for the first time in Jamaica in 1814, but its etymology is obscure,Citrus paradisi (Rutaceae), 2n = 2x, 3x, 4x = 18, 27, 38 hort >>> hesperidia

grape hyacinth: Muscari ssp. (Liliaceae) hort

grapevine >>> European grape

grass - Gras n: several species of the family Gramineae bot agr >>> Table 35

grasscloth >>> ramie

greater birdsfoot trefoil: Lotus uliginosis (Leguminosae) bot agr

great-headed garlic >>> Levant garlic

greengram >>> mung bean

green pea: Pisum sativum convar. sativum or convar. vulgare (Leguminosae) hort

green pepper - Grüner Pfeffer m >>> sweet pepper

grey mangrove - Schwarze Mangrove f: some of the species, such as pantropical mangrove, A. marina, can survive in highly saline conditions; it  is the most widely distributed mangrove species in Australia mainly due to its tolerance of cool conditions; on the east coast of Australia it occurs as far south as Corner Inlet in Victoria, while on the west coast its most southerly occurrence is Bunbury; it grows to 10 m tall; pencil sized peg type above-ground roots; light green leaves are approximately 10 cm long with a silvery-grey undersurface; the underside of the leaf has special glands for secreting excess salt; its genome may serve as gene pool for salinity resistance; salinization poses an increasingly serious problem in coastal and agricultural areas with negative effects on plant productivity and yield, Avicennia marina (Avicenniaceae) eco biot

groundnut - Erdnuss f >>> peanut

guar: a member of the Leguminosae; its wild progenitors are extinct but it is thought to have been a native of Africa, taken at an early date to Southeast Asia, where it now has many uses; it is also grown as a >>> cash crop in Texas and Oklahoma (USA), Cyamopsis tetragonoloba (Leguminosae), 2n = 2x = 14 hort

guava: Psidium guayava (Myrtaceae), 2n = 2x, 3x = 22, 33 hort

Guinea grass: Panicum maximum (Gramineae), 2n = 4x = 32 agr

gumbo >>> musk okra

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