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vivers ter_____________________________ |
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_______news March 2005 |
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_____________C4 Plants |
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C4 plants have mechanisms to fix carbon dioxide.
They vegetate between spring and autumn and are twice more efficient
in water utilization. They can live out of: THE AIRS OF THE SKIES AND
THE WINDS OF THE EARTH. Some (leguminosae, liliaceae) are even able
of turning its carbon dioxide reserves into glucose and store it in
their radicular system.
C4 plants ―also called 4-carbon pathway or Hatch-Slack pathway― are a fine achievement of nature, created to survive in poor and arid soils.
CAM ―Crassulacean Acidic Metabolism― plants grow in extremely
arid soils or inside rock cracks. We spoke about them in the conferences
on 16th June in the Vivers Ter's Open Days. They close their stomes
during the day in order not to transpire. They are nature's greatest
invention, able to survive under 3 mm dust (Sedum acre).
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tillandsia
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Using C4 Plants in Landscape Architecture |
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Unlike conventional plants, C3 plants ―similar to C4 plants but
found in cold areas― and C4 plants do not totally depend on absorbing
amino acids-minerals through the radicular system. Therefore
soil preparation and irrigation are of relative importance.
Like carnivorous plants, this plants make up for soil poverty through the absorption of insects. C3 and C4 plants make use of a CO2 conversion system (see the web sites: http://www.virtual.unal.edu.co/cursos/ciencias/2000051/lecciones/cap02/02_09.htm
http://plantphys.net).
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Main C4 plants in our horticulture |
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Amaryllidaceae |
Tulbalghia |
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Agavaceae |
Beschorneria, Agave, Nolina, Cordyline, Phormium, Dasylirion |
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Anacardiaceae |
Pistacia, Rhus |
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Boraginaceae |
Cordia, Echium |
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Liliaceae |
Hemerocallis, Kniphofia, Aloe, Clorophytum, Nerine, Ruscus, Asparagus, Agapanthus, Allium, Ophiopogon |
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Capparidaceae |
Capparis |
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Cistaceae |
Cistus, Helianthemum |
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Chenopodiaceae |
Atriplex |
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Convolvulaceae |
Convolvulus, Ipomoea |
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Elaeagnaceae |
Elaeagnus |
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Euphorbiaceae |
Euphorbia, Ricinus |
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Frankeniaceae |
Frankenia |
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Juncaginaceae |
Juncus |
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Leguminoceae |
Acacia, Albicia, Cercis, Bauhinia, Genista, Caesalpinia, Gleditsia, Ceratonia, Lotus, Coronilla, Ulex, Cytisus, Dorycnium, Erythrina, Parkinsonia, Sesbania, Sophora, Medicago, Robinia, Wisteria, Senna |
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Malvaceae |
Abutilon |
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Onagraceae |
Gaura |
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Plumbaginaceae |
Armeria, Ceratostigma, Limonium, Plumbago |
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Poaceae |
Hiparrhenia, Nassella, Stipa, Elymus, Pennisetum, Cynodon |
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Polygonaceae |
Muehlenbeckia, Polygonum |
This
article is a reflection about the plants used in ornamental horticulture.
We have many taxonomic references and some geographic ones but we do
not know their metabolic units. This line of work is difficult because
their behavior depends on the habitat they are in. Protea cultivation
has always been ―and keeps on being― the big concern of
agronomists (obesity in C3 and C4 plants is a major danger to their
health).
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____________Carnivorous Plants |
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hunting methods |
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Hinged traps: hinged
leaves fringed with crossed theeth-like projections quickly closing down.
Dionaea
Closing
pitfall:
insects fall down into a pitfall that closes with a lid.
Sarracenia
Nepenthes
Darlingtonia
Cephalotus
Heliamphora
Sticky leaves:
Pinguicula
Sticky tentacles
Byblis
Drosophyllum
Drosera
Bladder:
Genlisea: spiral rhizome with entry channel for insects, no way of scaping once inside the bladder.
Utricularia: they open the trapdoors, suck in the insect and close them again.
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ways of attracting the prey
- With the color, form or appeal.
- With the smell.
- With the guiding channel that leads the insect to the trap .
insect digestion
They
use a series of enzymes and bacterias in the digestion. Nepenthes, for
instance, have 5 digesting enzymes; Heliamphora, 9.
origins
Dionaea: North and South Carolina
Sarracenia: North America.
Nepenthes: East India.
Darlingtonia: California, Oregon, West Canada.
Cephalotus: South-East Australia.
Heliamphora: North and South America.
Byblis: Australia.
Drosophyllum: Portugal, Morocco, Spain.
Drosera: around the world.
Pinguicula: around the world from the artic to the tropic.
Polypompholyx: Australia.
Genlisea: Tropical Africa, Madagascar.
Aldrovanda: Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia.
Utricularia: everywhere.
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pictures extracted from
www.sarracenia.com |
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Film of the month: Hotel Rwanda |
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Liberia:
1989: 10.000 deaths, 500.000 homeless.
1992-1993: more death and revolution.
April 1996: the conflicts start again.
Sierra Leone: tens of thousands of deaths between 1992 and july 1999.
Somalia: 1997 floods produced by El Niño currents, 1.300 deaths and 800.000 homeless. Plus the existing famine.
Sudan: since 1990 thousands of Sudanese have lost their homes and live in extreme poverty.
Mozambique: 19986-1990: 900.000 deaths, 1.300.000 refugees
Burundi: October 1995 to April 1996, hundreds of thousands of deaths.
Rwanda: April 1994: 900.000 manslaughter deaths, over 1,2 million people in exile.
AIDS, malaria, famine, death...
Africa is the most fascinating continent in the world in terms of tribal ethnic groups. |
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Alex Puig
Vivers Ter
March 2005
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