Where is witchweed found?
Striga, commonly known as witchweed, is a genus of parasitic plants that occur naturally in parts of Africa, Asia, and Australia. It is in the family Orobanchaceae. Some species are serious pathogens of cereal crops, with the greatest effects being in savanna agriculture in Africa.
What is unique about witchweed?
Commonly known as “witchweed,” the parasitic plant Striga hermonthica devastates crops in sub-Saharan Africa. Scientists have discovered a unique protein in Striga that helps sustain its high transpiration. This means that in arid regions, Striga can steal water and nutrients more effectively from its hosts .
How does witchweed grow?
Witchweed seeds, minute and produced in great numbers, germinate when in contact with a host root. After emergence the plant can photosynthesize its own food but takes water and minerals from the host. The parasite dies when its seeds mature or when the host is harvested.
How did witchweed get here?
The date and mode of witchweed’s arrival in the United States are not known (although the fact that it belongs to the Broomrape family may shed some light on its mode of transport). The first plants were discovered by a graduate student from India, who recognized the parasite from his country.
How do you control witchweed?
(witchweed), which causes considerable crop losses to sorghum (Sorghum vulgare Pers.) in the Sudan and elsewhere, can be controlled by spraying the young crop with hormone weed-killers of 2,4-D type two to three weeks after sowing.
Is Striga is a stem parasite?
Striga are obligate root-parasitic plants of the major agricultural cereal crops, including millets, in tropical and semi-arid regions of Africa, Middle East, Asia, and Australia.
What is sorghum called in India?
jowar
In India sorghum is known as jowar, cholam, or jonna, in West Africa as Guinea corn, and in China as kaoliang.
Is Striga a parasitic plant?
Striga is a highly successful pathogen of cereal crops in sub-Saharan Africa. Also known as witchweed, Striga is an attractive parasitic plant whose beautiful flowers belie its noxiousness.
Is an obligate root Holo total parasite?
Holoparasites are always obligate so only two terms are needed, e.g. Dodder is a stem holoparasite. Hydnora spp. are root holoparasites.
What does China use sorghum for?
China uses sorghum to feed hogs and chickens, and to make moonshine | Farm Progress.
Can sorghum grow in UK?
Cultivated sorghum, sorghum bicolor, is grown in the UK as game cover due to its dense tall foliage. Dwarf varieties are also grown for their standing power. In parts of Africa and Asia sorghum is cultivated on marginal soils as grain for food and the straw for use as fodder and feed.
Are Morana and Striga sisters?
This team of vampires is much more than meets the eye. The Council of Sisters consists of four vampire females- Striga, Lenore, Morana, and Carmilla- who rule over Styria. Dracula wanted to avenge his wife. But the sisters love to see humans suffer and want to prison them as livestock.
Where can I find the red witchweed plant?
Red witchweed, Asiatic witchweed, striga, akarebwa omwe (Runyankore), ekeyongo (Ekegusii), emoto (Ateso) Widely naturalised in Africa and Asia (to which it may be indigenous ). it has also been recorded in Papua New Guinea and in a few locations in the USA.
Is the striga witch weed an invasive plant?
In common with most other parasitic weeds, it is not especially invasive in natural vegetation, but is much feared in crop land where infestations can build up to ruinous levels, especially with repeated growing of susceptible cereal crops. For this reason it is included in almost all lists of noxious, prohibited plant species.
What kind of soil does witchweed grow in?
It is also favoured by low soil moisture, and rarely occurs on irrigated soils, but can tolerate abundant moisture for short periods. It is a plant of African savanna, almost invariably associated with cereal cropping and relatively uncommon in natural vegetation.
How does witch weed affect a host plant?
The host plant’s nutrients are depleted and energy is spent supporting the parasitic witchweed. Infestations of witch weed reduce yields and contaminate crops. Damage is particularly severe under conditions of low rainfall and poor soil fertility.