Wild Buckwheat

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This article is about the Eurasion/African plant known as wild buckwheat. For North American plant which shares the same common name, see Eriogonum.
Wild Buckwheat

Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Magnoliophyta
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Caryophyllales
Family: Polygonaceae
Genus: Fallopia
Species: F. convolvulus
Binomial name
Fallopia convolvulus
(L.) A.Löve

Wild Buckwheat (Fallopia convolvulus, syn Polygonum convolvulus L., Bilderdykia convolvulus (L.) Dumont) is a fast-growing annual flowering plant in the family Polygonaceae. It is also known as Black Bindweed, Climbing Bindweed, and Corn Bindweed. It is native throughout Europe, Asia and northern Africa [1].

It is a herbaceous vine growing to 1-2 m long, with alternate triangular leaves 2-6 cm long. The basal lobes of the leaves are pointed at the petiole. The flowers are small, and greenish-pink to greenish white, clustered on racemes. These clusters give way to small triangular fruit, with one seed in each fruit [2].

Note that while it superficially resemble true bindweeds (genus Convolvulus) there are many notable differences; Wild Buckwheat has ocrea (stipule-sheath at nodes), which true bindweeds do not; bindweeds have conspicuous flowers typical of morning-glories while wild buckweed has flowers that are unobtrusive and only about 4 mm long [2].

[edit] Cultivation and uses

Wild Buckwheat seeds are edible, and were used in the past as a food crop, with remains found in Bronze Age middens [3]. The seeds are too small and low-yielding to make a commercial crop, and it is now more widely considered a weed, occurring in crops, waste areas and roadsides. It is also an invasive species in North America [1].

Wild Buckwheat prefers cultivated land, but can survive on many different locales and soil types [2]. It can be a damaging weed when it is growing in a garden or crop, as it can not only damage the plant it entwines itself around, but can also hinder mechanised harvesting.

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b Germplasm Resources Information Network: Fallopia convolvulus
  2. ^ a b c Richard H. Uva, Joseph C. Neal and Joseph M. Ditomaso, 1997. Weeds of The Northeast. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, pp. 276-277.
  3. ^ Blamey, M. & Grey-Wilson, C., 1989. Flora of Britain and Northern Europe. ISBN 0-340-40170-2.