Taw Manroot

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Taw Manroot

Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Magnoliophyta
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Cucurbitales
Family: Cucurbitaceae
Genus: Marah
Species: M. watsonii
Binomial name
Marah watsonii
(Torr. ex S.Wats.) T.J. Howell

The Taw Manroot, Marah watsonii, is an uncommon manroot of central northern California. Its range is bounded by the eastern coastal foothills, the western foothills of the northern Sierra Nevada and Cascades ranges and from Lake Berryessa in the south to Lake Shasta in the north.

Contents

[edit] Foliage

Taw manroot shares will all marah species non-twining stems and tendrils. Unlike other manroot species, however, Taw manroot vines are nearly hairless with a glaucous, grey-green color. Vines appear in late winter or early spring in response to increased rainfall, and can climb or scramble to a length of 6m. Unlike the leaves of other manroot species, taw manroot leaves are highly dissected and multi-lobed - reminiscent of jigsaw puzzle pieces.

Vines emerge from a large, hard tuberous root which can reach several meters in length and weigh in excess of 100kg. Newly exposed tubers can be seen along roadcuts or eroded slopes and have a scaley, tan-colored surface. Injured or decaying tubers take on a golden or orange color.

[edit] Flower

Flowers are white. Flowers appear soon after the vine emerges. The flowers are monoecious, that is, individual flowers are either male or female, but both sexes can be found on the same plant. Male flowers appear in open spikes while females flowers, distinguished by a swollen base, usually appear individually and hang down from the axis of the male flower-spike. The plant is self-fertile, i.e. pollen from the male flowers can fertilise the female flowers on the same plant; pollination is by insects.

[edit] Fruit

The fruit is spherical to oblong, 6-8 cm in diameter, and suspended from a long, wrinkled stem. Taw manroot fruit have fewer and more robust, hornlike spikes than other manroot species with the spikes tapering to smooth ridges at the bottom of the fruit. Some plants have smooth fruit with dark green veins running from top to bottom. Unripe fruit are light green with dark green stripes, ripening to yellow. The fruit swells as it ripens until finally rupturing and expelling the large seeds. Fruit begin to form in spring and ripen in summer.

[edit] Seeds & Germination

Taw manroot seeds are more spherical than other manroot species. Fruit usually hold 4 or more of these large seeds. Seeds have an intriguing germination process. The initial shoot emerges from the seed and grows downward into the earth. This shoot then splits, one part beginning to swell and form the tuber, while the second part grows back to the surface and becomes the vine.

[edit] Habits

Taw Manroot grows most vigorously by streams or in washes but can also be successful in dryer areas, at elevations up to 1600 metres. It will tolerate a variety of soil types and acidities, but it requires at least seasonally moist soil. Vines can grow in full-sun to heavily shaded conditions. Vines die back in summer and emerge in late winter.

[edit] General

All parts of the plant have a bitter taste (this is the meaning of the genus name Marah, which comes from Hebrew). Despite this, the leaves have been used as a vegetable. The large tuber of the manroot can be processed for a soap-like extract.

[edit] External links