Beckmania

2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38

Beckmannia - a small genus of annual and perennial herbaceous plants of the Cereals family. The genus got its name in honor of the legendary scientist I. Beckman. They are found everywhere, including on the territory of Russia. Typical habitats are damp and flooded meadows, forests, steppes, swamp zones.

Characteristics of culture

Beckmania is represented by annual and perennial plants up to 150 cm high. They are characterized by erect stems, crowned with linear, flat, rough leaves no more than 1, 2 cm wide. The inflorescences are dense, paniculate, up to 30 cm long. They, in turn, consist of alternately spikelets up to 5 cm long. Spikelet scales are leathery, membranous, swollen on the dorsum, veined, pubescent with short hairs or glabrous.

Common types

Northern Beckmannia (lat. Beckmannia borealis) represented by herbaceous plants up to 90 cm in height with erect smooth stems topped with flat, bare, rough to the touch leaves. Inflorescence is a panicle bearing short, rounded, wedge-shaped, laterally flattened spikelets. Northern Beckmania blooms in early June and ends in the second or third decade of August.

Beckmania ordinary (lat. Beckmannia eruciformis) It is represented by perennial plants, which in the process of growth form loose "bushes" with a height of 20 to 150 cm. The stems of the species under consideration are thickened, crowned with rough, flat, green or yellow-green foliage with a pointed tip. Panicles consist of obovate, tiled spikelets with saccular swollen scales. The species is picky about soil conditions. Prefers well-moistened soils; on dry soils it does not grow at all.

Beckmannia hairy-flowered (Latin Beckmannia hirsutiflora) It is represented by perennial plants up to 40 cm high. It is characterized by erect smooth stems with pubescent leaves. The panicles are rather long, up to 15 cm, and consist of spikelets located in a tiled arrangement, looking upward. Spikelet scales are bristly, hairy, sharp at the tips. Beckmania blooms throughout the summer, usually until the second or third decade of September.

Usage

Beckmania belongs to the category of hay herbaceous plants. Herbivores are fed with it, however, the collection of grass is carried out before flowering, since from the moment the flowers form, the foliage and stems become tough. As a rule, specialists manage to make two cuttings during the summer. Due to the fact that the foliage and stems of beckmania have a specific bitter taste, it is mixed with other herbs in different proportions (clover, sweet clover, bluegrass, millet, etc. are allies). Beckmania is especially recommended for cattle. This aspect is due to its good digestibility and rich composition.

Sowing beckmania has an extremely positive effect on the condition of the soil. It is often sown on fields in order to reclaim salt marshes and quickly restore soil in places where previously construction work was carried out, or where various waste was buried. In addition to the listed methods of application, some types of beckmania are used for landscaping personal backyard plots. As a rule, the plant is used for group plantings.