Bunias

Bunias 

a genus of annual, biennial, and perennial herbs of the family Cruciferae. The leaves are pinnatipartite or entire, and the flowers are yellow or white. The fruit is an indehiscent silicula.

There are six species, distributed in temperate and subtropical zones of Eurasia and in North Africa. The USSR has two species. The warted bunias (B. orientalis), a biennial or perennial taproot weed reaching 150 cm in height, has yellow flowers and ovate, warty fruits. The plant is found in the European USSR, the Caucasus, and the southern part of Western Siberia. It grows in fallow fields, meadows, wastelands, and pastures, as well as amid plantings of perennial herbs, at dumps, and along roads. It propagates by seeds, root cuttings, and segmentation of the neck root into separate parts on which buds form. Measures to control the weed include deep autumn plowing, root removal, and decontamination of seed materials.

The young leaves and stems, which are rich in vitamin C, may be eaten raw or cooked. Bunias are nectariferous. The plants are a second-rate fodder for livestock and may be used as silage.

REFERENCE

Kott, S. A. Sornye rasteniia i bor’ba s nimi, 3rd ed. Moscow, 1961.

T. V. EGOROVA