Striga

Not to be confused with Strzyga, Strigoi, or Shtriga.

Striga
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Lamiales
Family: Orobanchaceae
Tribe: Buchnereae
Genus: Striga
Lour.
Synonyms
  • Campuleia Thouars
  • Microsyphus C.Presl
  • Psammostachys C.Presl
  • Camphyleia Spreng.

Striga, commonly known as witchweed,[1] is a genus of parasitic plants that occur naturally in parts of Africa, Asia, and Australia. It is currently classified in the family Orobanchaceae,[2] although older classifications place it in the Scrophulariaceae.[3] Some species are serious pathogens of cereal crops, with the greatest effects being in savanna agriculture in Africa. It also causes considerable crop losses in other regions, including other tropical and subtropical crops in its native range and in the Americas. The generic name derives from Latin strī̆ga, "witch".[4]

Witchweeds are characterized by bright-green stems and leaves and small, brightly colored and attractive flowers.[5] They are obligate hemiparasites of roots and require a living host for germination and initial development, though they can then survive on their own.[6]

The number of species is uncertain, but may exceed 40 by some counts.[6][7]

  1. ^ NRCS. "Striga". PLANTS Database. United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Retrieved 4 December 2015.
  2. ^ Young, Nelson D.; Steiner, Kim E.; dePamphilis, Claude W. (Autumn 1999). "The Evolution of Parasitism in Scrophulariaceae/Orobanchaceae: Plastid Gene Sequences Refute an Evolutionary Transition Series" (PDF). Annals of the Missouri Botanical Garden. 86 (4): 876–93. doi:10.2307/2666173. JSTOR 2666173.
  3. ^ For example, Integrated Taxonomic Information System as of 16 Sep 2007
  4. ^ "Latin Definition for: striga, strigae (ID: 35801) - Latin Dictionary and Grammar Resources". Latdict.
  5. ^ Sand, Paul, Robert Eplee, and Randy Westbrooks. Witchweed Research and Control in the United States. Champaign, IL: Weed Science Society of America, 1990.[page needed]
  6. ^ a b "Witchweeds - beautiful but deadly", The Horticulturalist, Vol. 21-4, October 2012[page needed]
  7. ^ Mohamed, Kamal I.; Musselman, Lytton John; Riches, Charles R. (Winter 2001). "The Genus Striga (Scrophulariaceae) in Africa". Annals of the Missouri Botanical Garden. 88 (1): 60–103. doi:10.2307/2666132. JSTOR 2666132.