Glasswort
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 Salicornia europaea
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- For the Australian species also referred to as glassworts, see Halosarcia
The glassworts comprise the genus Salicornia of succulent, salt tolerant plants that grow in salt marshes, on beaches, and among mangroves. Glasswort species are native to the United States and Europe.
Glassworts are also known as marsh samphire; the term samphire (see disambiguation page) is used for several unrelated species of coastal plant.
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[edit] Botanical
The glassworts are small, usually less that 30 cm tall, succulent herbs with a jointed horizontal main stem and erect lateral branches. The leaves are small and scale-like and as such the plant may appear leafless. Many species of glasswort are green, but their foliage turns red in autumn. The hemaphrodite flowers are wind pollinated, and the fruit is small and succulent and contains a single seed.
Glasswort can tolerate immersion in salt water.
The glasswort uses the c4 pathway to take in carbon dioxide from the surrounding atmosphere. This is a more efficient way to uptake carbon dioxide helping the plant to photosynthesise.
Salicornia species are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species including the Coleophora case-bearers C. atriplicis and C. salicorniae (the latter feeds exclusively on Salicornia spp).
[edit] Species
Some common species of glasswort include:
- American, Virginia or Woody Glasswort, Salicornia virginica
- Common Glasswort, Salicornia europea
- Slender Glasswort, Salicornia maritima
- Dwarf Glasswort, Salicornia bigelovii
- Perennial Glasswort, Salicornia perennis
- Purple Glasswort, Salicornia ramosissima
[edit] Culinary
Glasswort is edible, either cooked or raw. In England it is one of several plants known as samphire (see Rock samphire), which is believed to be a corruption of "St. Peter's Herb" [1]. Samphire is usually cooked, either steamed or microwaved, and then coated in butter. After cooking, it resembles seaweed in colour, and the flavour and texture are like young spinach stems or asparagus, and despite its texture when raw, after cooking is not at all stringy or tough. Samphire is very often used as a suitably maritime accompaniment to fish or seafood.
More recipes can be found here and here.
[edit] Industrial use (historical)
Burnt glasswort was used as a source of soda for glassmaking, until the introduction of the LeBlanc process.
[edit] Sources
BBC Gardener's Question Time - where there is apparently some confusion between the glasswort (marsh samphire, found in Suffolk) and the rock samphire (found in Dorset).
Biff Vernon discusses the common confusion between marsh samphire and rock samphire, and reproduces a poem on the subject by William Logan.
