Kerguelen cabbage

Kerguelen cabbage

plant
      (species Pringlea antiscorbutica), plant resembling the common cabbage and belonging to the same family (Brassicaceae). It was named for Kerguelen Island. The leaves of the plant contain a pale-yellow, highly pungent essential oil rich in ascorbic acid (vitamin C), for which reason it was a useful dietary supplement against scurvy. It was discovered by the British explorer Captain James Cook during his first voyage (1776), but the first account of it was published by the English botanist Sir Joseph Dalton Hooker (Hooker, Sir Joseph Dalton) upon his return from the Antarctic voyage of the Erebus and Terror in 1839–43. During the stay of the latter expedition on the island, daily use was made of this vegetable either cooked alone or boiled with the ship's beef, pork, or pea soup.

      Although belonging to a family of insect-pollinated plants, it has become modified for wind pollination, having projecting stamens (male parts) and long threadlike projections on the stigma (female part). This peculiarity is apparently in adaptation to the absence of winged insects on the island.

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Universalium. 2010.

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  • kerguelen cabbage — ˈkərgələ̇n , |kergə|len noun Usage: usually capitalized K Etymology: from Kerguelen island in the southern Indian ocean : an herb (Pringlea antiscorbutica) of the family Cruciferae of the island of Kerguelen that is unique in its family in being… …   Useful english dictionary

  • Kerguelen cabbage — noun The flowering plant Pringlea antiscorbutica …   Wiktionary

  • Cabbage — This article is about the vegetable. For other uses, see Cabbage (disambiguation). Cabbage Cabbage and its cross section Details …   Wikipedia

  • Kerguelen Islands — Infobox Country native name = Archipel des Kerguelen conventional long name = Kerguelen Islands common name = Kerguelen Islands symbol type = Coat of arms national motto = national anthem = map caption = map caption2 = Map of Kerguelen Island… …   Wikipedia

  • Flora and fauna of the Kerguelen Islands — FaunaThe Kerguelen Islands are located at the Antarctic convergence, where cold water moving up from the Antarctic mixes with the warmer water of the Indian Ocean. As a consequence, marine mammals and seabirds are numerous.MammalsSeals and fur… …   Wikipedia

  • Pringlea — Kerguelenkohl Alte Pflanze auf den Kerguelen, Rallier du Baty Systematik Klasse …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Pringlea antiscorbutica — Kerguelenkohl Alte Pflanze auf den Kerguelen, Rallier du Baty Systematik Klasse …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Kerguelenkohl — Alte Pflanze auf den Kerguelen, Rallier du Baty Systematik Rosiden Euro …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Pringlea antiscorbutica — taxobox name = Kerguelen Cabbage regnum = Plantae unranked divisio = Angiosperms unranked classis = Eudicots unranked ordo = Rosids ordo = Brassicales familia = Brassicaceae genus = Pringlea species = P. antiscorbutica binomial = Pringlea… …   Wikipedia

  • French Southern and Antarctic Lands — <p></p> <p></p> Introduction ::French Southern and Antarctic Lands <p></p> Background: <p></p> In February 2007, the Iles Eparses became an integral part of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands… …   The World Factbook

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