Crambe is a
genusIn biology, a genus is a taxonomic unit used in the classification of living and fossil organisms. The term comes from Latin genus "descent, family, type, gender" , cognate with – genos, "race, stock, kin" ..In addition, genus is a taxonomic rank in the hierarchy In biology, a genus (plural:...
of
BrassicaceaeBrassicaceae or Cruciferae, also known as the crucifers, the mustard family or cabbage family is a family of flowering plants . The name Brassicaceae is derived from the included genus Brassica. Cruciferae is an older name, meaning "cross-bearing", because the four petals of their flowers are...
native to
EuropeEurope is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally divided from Asia to its east by the water divide of the Ural Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian Sea, the Caucasus Mountains , and the Black Sea to the southeast...
, southwest and central
AsiaAsia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.6% of the earth's total surface area and with approximately 4 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population.Asia is traditionally defined as part of the...
and eastern
AfricaAfrica is the world's second-largest and second most-populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area. With a billion people in 61 territories, it accounts for about 14.8% of the...
. It includes among its species
seakaleCrambe maritima is a halophytic perennial plant in the genus Crambe that grows wild along the coasts of Europe, from the North Atlantic to the Black Sea. It has large fleshy glaucous collard-like leaves and abundant white flowers...
(
Crambe maritima), grown as a
leaf vegetableLeaf vegetables, also called potherbs, green vegetables, greens, or leafy greens, are plant leaves eaten as a vegetable, sometimes accompanied by tender petioles and shoots...
,
Crambe cordifoliaCrambe cordifolia, syn. Crambe glabrata DC., a colewort sometimes called Heartleaf crambe, is an ornamental plant native to the Caucasus.-External links:* *...
which is grown as an herbaceous border perennial, and
Crambe abyssinicaCrambe abyssinica is an oilseed crop, native to the Mediterranean area. According to the Alternative Field Crops Manual, it is used as an industrial lubricant, a corrosion inhibitor, and as an ingredient in the manufacture of synthetic rubber. It can also be used in surfactants and slip and coating...
, which is grown for an oil from the seeds that has similar characteristics to
whaleWhale is the common name for marine mammals of the order Cetacea. The term whale is sometimes used to refer to all cetaceans, but in more common English usage it generally excludes the members of the Delphinoidea superfamily, such as dolphins and porpoises...
oil.
Crambe species are used as food plants by the
larvaA larva is a young form of animal with indirect development, going through or undergoing metamorphosis ....
e of some
LepidopteraLepidoptera is an order of insects that includes moths and butterflies. It is one of the most speciose orders in the class Insecta, encompassing moths and the three superfamilies of butterflies, skipper butterflies, and moth-butterflies...
species including
Lime-speck PugThe Lime-speck Pug is a moth of the family Geometridae. It is a common species throughout the Palearctic region, the Near East and North Africa....
.
As a perennial garden plant it produces spectacular and large sprays of flowers some 1.5 m tall.
Crambe is a
genusIn biology, a genus is a taxonomic unit used in the classification of living and fossil organisms. The term comes from Latin genus "descent, family, type, gender" , cognate with – genos, "race, stock, kin" ..In addition, genus is a taxonomic rank in the hierarchy In biology, a genus (plural:...
of
BrassicaceaeBrassicaceae or Cruciferae, also known as the crucifers, the mustard family or cabbage family is a family of flowering plants . The name Brassicaceae is derived from the included genus Brassica. Cruciferae is an older name, meaning "cross-bearing", because the four petals of their flowers are...
native to
EuropeEurope is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally divided from Asia to its east by the water divide of the Ural Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian Sea, the Caucasus Mountains , and the Black Sea to the southeast...
, southwest and central
AsiaAsia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.6% of the earth's total surface area and with approximately 4 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population.Asia is traditionally defined as part of the...
and eastern
AfricaAfrica is the world's second-largest and second most-populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area. With a billion people in 61 territories, it accounts for about 14.8% of the...
. It includes among its species
seakaleCrambe maritima is a halophytic perennial plant in the genus Crambe that grows wild along the coasts of Europe, from the North Atlantic to the Black Sea. It has large fleshy glaucous collard-like leaves and abundant white flowers...
(
Crambe maritima), grown as a
leaf vegetableLeaf vegetables, also called potherbs, green vegetables, greens, or leafy greens, are plant leaves eaten as a vegetable, sometimes accompanied by tender petioles and shoots...
,
Crambe cordifoliaCrambe cordifolia, syn. Crambe glabrata DC., a colewort sometimes called Heartleaf crambe, is an ornamental plant native to the Caucasus.-External links:* *...
which is grown as an herbaceous border perennial, and
Crambe abyssinicaCrambe abyssinica is an oilseed crop, native to the Mediterranean area. According to the Alternative Field Crops Manual, it is used as an industrial lubricant, a corrosion inhibitor, and as an ingredient in the manufacture of synthetic rubber. It can also be used in surfactants and slip and coating...
, which is grown for an oil from the seeds that has similar characteristics to
whaleWhale is the common name for marine mammals of the order Cetacea. The term whale is sometimes used to refer to all cetaceans, but in more common English usage it generally excludes the members of the Delphinoidea superfamily, such as dolphins and porpoises...
oil.
Crambe species are used as food plants by the
larvaA larva is a young form of animal with indirect development, going through or undergoing metamorphosis ....
e of some
LepidopteraLepidoptera is an order of insects that includes moths and butterflies. It is one of the most speciose orders in the class Insecta, encompassing moths and the three superfamilies of butterflies, skipper butterflies, and moth-butterflies...
species including
Lime-speck PugThe Lime-speck Pug is a moth of the family Geometridae. It is a common species throughout the Palearctic region, the Near East and North Africa....
.
As a perennial garden plant it produces spectacular and large sprays of flowers some 1.5 m tall. These flowers comprise numerous small pale yellow to white florets distributed in three dimensions on slender but firm stems. They have a strong and pleasant fragrance of
honeyHoney is a sweet food made by some insects using nectar from flowers. The variety produced by honey bees is the one most commonly referred to and is the type of honey collected by beekeepers and consumed by humans...
. The leaves are unimpressive, looking like common cabbage leaves, although even they are quite good at ground coverage. The plant was somewhat popular in the Victorian era, fell from common usage in the 20th Century and is now making a comeback. It is a bold and impressive plant that fills a considerable volume of space.
Crambe abyssinicaCrambe abyssinica is an oilseed crop, native to the Mediterranean area. According to the Alternative Field Crops Manual, it is used as an industrial lubricant, a corrosion inhibitor, and as an ingredient in the manufacture of synthetic rubber. It can also be used in surfactants and slip and coating...
, often just called
Crambe in the literature, is grown for the oil from its seeds, which are used as a substitute for
whale oilWhale oil is the oil obtained from the blubber of various species of whales, particularly the three species of Right Whale and the Bowhead Whale prior to the modern era, as well as several other species of baleen whale...
.
Crambe maritima, a
halophyteA halophyte is a plant that naturally grows where it is affected by salinity in the root area or by salt spray, such as in saline semi-deserts, mangrove swamps, marshes and sloughs, and seashores. An example of a halophyte is the salt marsh grass Spartina alterniflora . Relatively few plant species...
, forms a
tumbleweedA tumbleweed is the above-ground part of a plant that, once mature and dry, separates from the root and tumbles away in the wind. Usually, the tumbleweed is the entire plant apart from the roots, but in a few species it is a flower cluster. The tumbleweed habit is most common in steppe and desert...
.