Brassica oleracea
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Read about Brassica oleracea in the Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture
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Brassica oleracea, Linn. Cabbage, Cauliflower, Brussels Sprouts, Kale. Fig. 627. Lvs. smooth from the first, and the root not tuberous: fls. large and long (¾-1 in. length, at least often), light- colored, slender- pedicelled, in long and open racemes: pods large, long-beaked. If the name Brassica oleracea is held for a generalized group without a type form, then the wild plant may be designated as var. syl- vestris, Linn. In the present treatment, however, the wild form is regarded as the type and is therefore not given a varietal name. Brassica oleracea grows wild on the sea-cliffs of W. and S. Eu. Fig. 628, from nature, shows the common form as it grows on the chalk cliffs of the English Channel. It is a perennial plan t of short duration, or perhaps sometimes a biennial, with a very tough and woody root, a diffuse habit, and large thick deep- lobed Ivs. in various shades of green and reddish, and more or less glaucous. The Ivs. of this plant were probably eaten by the barbarous or half-civilized peoples; and, when history begins, the plant had been transferred to cult, grounds and had begun to produce dense rosettes or heads of Ivs. It appears to have been in general use before the Aryan migrations to the westward. There were several distinct types or races of the cabbage in cult, in Pliny's time. From the one original stock have apparently sprung all the forms of cabbages, cauliflowers, brussels sprouts and kales. For this family or group of plants the English language has no generic name. The French include them all under the term Chou, and the Germans treat them under Kohl. These various tribes may be classified as follows: Var. acephala, DC. Fig. 706. The various headless cabbages, comprising kales or borecoles, in many types and varieties, as the tall or tree kales, curled or Scotch kales, and collards. Its likeness may be found wild on the cliffs of the southeastern coast of England today. The thick, tender Ivs. of the kales are used as "greens." See Col- lards and Kale. It is not certain that all the kales and collards belong here; some of them may be B. campestris. Var. Caulo-Rapa, DC. Kohlrabi (which see). St. tuberous above the roots, the tuber bearing the Ivs. Var. gemmifera, DC. The bud-bearing cabbage, or brussels sprouts (see Fig. 672). In this group, the main st. or axis is tall and erect, and axillary buds are developed into little heads. See Brussels sprouts. Var. capitata, Linn. The head-bearing, or true cabbages, kraut of the Germans. In this group, the main axis is short and thick, and the Ivs. are densely packed into a gigantic bud or head (Figs. 701-705). The varieties of cabbage are very numerous and various. See Cabbage. A serviceable classification of them might follow this order: Var. botrytis, Linn. Cauliflower and broccoli, in which the head is formed of the condensed and thickened fl.-cluster. Broccoli produces its heads later in the season than cauliflower, and in mild climates it is allowed to remain and make its heads in spring. See Cauliflower.
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Brassica oleracea or Wild Cabbage, is a species of Brassica native to coastal southern and western Europe, where its tolerance of salt and lime but intolerance of competition from other plants typically restricts its natural occurrence to limestone sea cliffs.
Wild B. olearacea is a tall biennial plant, forming a stout rosette of large leaves in the first year, the leaves being fleshier and thicker than those of other species of Brassica, adaptations to store water and nutrients in its difficult growing environment. In its second year, the stored nutrients are used to produce a flower spike 1–2 m tall bearing numerous yellow flowers.
Cultivation and uses
Although B. oleracea is believed to have been cultivated for several thousand years, its history as a domesticated plant is not clear before Greek and Roman times, when is known to be a well-established garden vegetable. Theophrastus mentions three kinds of this species: a curly-leaved, a smooth-leaved, and a wild-type.[1] It has been bred into a wide range of cultivars, including cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, and more, some of which are hardly recognisable as being members of the same species. It is one of the most important human food crop plants. According to the Triangle of U theory, B. oleracea is very closely related to five other species of the genus Brassica.
The plant is used because of its large food reserves, which are stored over the winter in its leaves. It is rich in essential nutrients including vitamin C.
The cultivars of B. oleracea are grouped by developmental form into seven major cultivar groups, of which the Acephala Group remains most like the natural Wild Cabbage in appearance:
- Brassica oleracea Acephala Group - kale and collard greens (borekale)
- Brassica oleracea Alboglabra Group - kai-lan (Chinese broccoli)
- Brassica oleracea Botrytis Group - cauliflower (and Chou Romanesco)
- Brassica oleracea Capitata Group - cabbage
- Brassica oleracea Gemmifera Group - Brussels sprouts
- Brassica oleracea Gongylodes Group - kohlrabi
- Brassica oleracea Italica Group - broccoli
Some (notably Brussels sprouts and broccoli) contain high levels of sinigrin which is thought to help prevent bowel cancer.
For other edible plants in the family Brassicaceae, see cruciferous vegetables.
Notes
- ↑ Daniel Zohary and Maria Hopf, Domestication of plants in the Old World, third edition (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2000), p. 199.