Meadow quail wheat (Melampyrum pratense)
Swedish: Ängskovall | English: Common Cow-wheat | Family: Orobanchaceae
Meadow quail wheat (Melampyrum pratense)
Botanical illustration: Meadow quail wheat (Melampyrum pratense), in Swedish'Ängskovall'.
The meadow quail wheat (Melampyrum pratense), Swedish Ängskovall, covers mossy wild berry soils with its pale yellow tubular flowers.
As a semi-parasite (hemiparasite), it carries out photosynthesis itself, but uses small suction organs (haustoria) to tap into the roots of spruce and blueberry bushes to obtain water and mineral salts.
Facts & Characteristics
- Scientific Name: Wachtelweizen
- Category / Order: Pflanzen (Flora)
- Nature, Taiga & Waters of Västerbotten: Nature, Taiga & Waters of Västerbotten
- Native to Northern Sweden: Native to Northern Sweden
Questions & Answers (FAQ)
Why is quail wheat a semi-parasite?
It has green leaves for photosynthesis, but extracts additional nutrients from neighboring plants via root suction organs.
How do the plant's seeds spread?
Ants carry the seeds to their nests because they have a nutritious oil body (elaiosome).