Crambe orientalis L. 1753
Creators: name: Sennikov, Alexander
name: Lazkov, Georgy
name: German, Dmitry A.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2025
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Plantae
Tracheophyta
Magnoliopsida
Brassicales
Brassicaceae
Crambe
Crambe orientalis

description: Crambe orientalis L., 1753
Crambe orientalis L., Sp. Pl. 2: 671 (1753).
= Crambe amabilis Butkov & Majlun, Bot. Mater. Gerb. Inst. Bot. Akad. Nauk Uzbeksk. S. S. R. 17: 3 (1962).
— Crambe schugnana auct. non Korsh.: Vasilieva (1961).
Distribution
Native distribution
Asia Minor, Caucasus, Near East, Iraq, Iran, Turkmenistan (mountains), Afghanistan, Pakistan (Khalilov 1993).
Secondary distribution
Central Asia (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan).
Distribution in Central Asia
Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan (Fig. 4).
In Kazakhstan, the species is known from a vast area along the north-western Tian-Shan (Botschantzev 1977, Lazkov and Redina 2007). It is currently known also from several localities in southern Kazakhstan from Almaty to Lake Balqaş (Nobis et al. 2016, iNaturalist 2024, Plantarium 2024) and in one isolated locality in northern Kazakhstan, Karagandy Town (Plantarium 2024).
In Uzbekistan, the species was found in the eastern part of the country, mostly adjacent to Kazakhstan (Botschantzev 1977) and recently also in an isolated locality in the south, near Boysun Town (previously unpublished record).
In Kyrgyzstan, the species was first reported from the Chüy Depression, north of Bishkek (Lazkov and Redina 2007) and then from the Talas Depression, the western part of the country at the border with Kazakhstan (Lazkov and Sennikov 2014).
In Tajikistan, the species was recently found as naturalised in agricultural areas along the Mogendarya River (Nobis et al. 2016). This locality is not connected with the native distribution area in the adjacent Afghanistan because the species has not been found along the Amudarya River in the northern part of that country (Breckle et al. 2013).
In Turkmenistan, the species is native along the mountains in the southern parts of the country (Nikitin and Geldykhanov 1988). No alien localities are known.
In Central Asia, Crambe orientalis was found for the first time on a fallow field at Jeri post station (Leninskoe Village in the Soviet times, Kazygurt Village in Kazakhstan) along the road from Tashkent to Şymkent, in present-day Kazakhstan, in 1922. To develop on that field, this slow-growing perennial species must have been introduced a few years before its sampling, i. e. already in the Imperial times. We do not have any written or even indirect evidence regarding the origin of this record, but it can be inferred from published side evidence. As the species is not a segetal weed, it must have been introduced for cultivation, as an edible or forage plant. Already in the mid- 19 th century, the Caucasian Society for Agriculture (established for public edication in Tiflis, now Tbilisi, in 1850) has widely advertised the culinary values of the cultivated C. maritima L. and its wild relatives (Kolodeev 1853) in the Caucasus. The society offered seed material from Tiflis, which was easy to collect also in native populations of C. orientalis, occurring in the vicinity of the city (Grossheim 1950). The seed distributed by the society was the most likely source for the early experimental cultivation of C. orientalis in Central Asia.
As evident from numerous herbarium specimens collected in that area, the field at Jeri became the source of the species invasion, which also covered the neighbouring villages along the main road (Botschantzev 1977) and expanded to natural habitats (Butkov and Mailun 1962). In the 1950 s, the species was found also south of Tashkent, spreading along the Chirchik and Pskem Rivers, which are adjacent to the place of the original introduction. Currently, it is widely distributed along the north-western Tian-Shan, forming extensive populations especially in arable lands (Fig. 5), but also ascending to the mountain slopes from river valleys (German, pers. obs.).
In the 1950 s- 1970 s, Crambe orientalis was cultivated on experimental fields and in gardens in Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan as a forage or ornamental plant (Amirkhanov et al. 1974, Kadyrkulova 1987). It was recommended for cultivation and, according to herbarium records, used widely in Central Asia. Naturalised remnants of its former field cultivation were found in Uzbekistan (Boysun), Tajikistan (Mogendarya) and Kyrgyzstan (Chüy Depression), whereas its former ornamental cultivation, documented in Uzbekistan (Tashkent, Yangidarya), Kyrgyzstan (near Bishkek) and Kazakhstan (Almaty, Karagandy), also produced locally established populations.
Although the field and garden use of the species is no longer popular, it continues spreading from the places of its former cultivation. Its expansion, well documented in many areas, shows a high potential for the future invasion.
Distribution in Kyrgyzstan
Western Tian-Shan, Northern Tian-Shan (Fig. 6).
The species is known from two separate areas in the Western and Northern Tian-Shan. The single locality in the Western Tian-Shan, discovered in 2013 (Lazkov and Sennikov 2014), is a direct continuation of the first invasion that started between Tashkent and Şymkent. Several localities around and north of Bishkek belong to an area of the species invasion in the Chüy Depression (Fig. 7), which has been repeatedly sampled since 2006 (Lazkov and Redina 2007).
The species was found mostly on the plain and in foothills, but also cultivated in gardens at elevations up to 1600 m a. s. l.
Ecology
Dry stony slopes on plains and in foothills in the native distribution area. Ruderal places, fallow and cultivated fields in the secondary distribution area.
Biology
Perennial with a strong, thickened taproot, forming a tumbleweed structure that facilitates self-dispersal for considerable distances.
In cultivation, the plants start flowering in the third year. Native occurrence and cultivation do not require any special water supply, so that the plants may develop without irrigation in arid territories.
Taxon discussion
Crambe orientalis was not known to Botschantzev and Vvedensky (1955) due to the lack of earlier herbarium collections from Uzbekistan in Tashkent. The species was rediscovered in the field along the Keles River and between Angren and Chirchik rivers by Butkov and Mailun (1962), who did not recognise its correct identity and ventured to describe it as a narrow endemic to Uzbekistan, C. amabilis. Botschantzev (1977) observed the species in its type locality and realised its alien origin; he identified the species as C. orientalis and this identity has been widely accepted (Kovalevskaya 1974, Khalilov 1993, POWO 2024).
Notes
Czernjakowska (1939) reported the traditional use of Crambe orientalis as an edible plant, but that record was erroneously based on the old report of Hablitz (1785), who described the use of the Crimean plants previously referred to this species. However, the active use of another, ecologically similar species in Central Asia has been recorded: C. kotschyana Boiss. was traditionally used for fodder in Uzbekistan (Amirkhanov and Solonov 1964) and Afghanistan (Vavilov and Bukinich 1929) and as edible and fodder in Turkmenistan (Larin and Larina 1951). In the foothills of the North Caucasus, the culinary use of " C. tatarica " (= C. grandiflora DC.) as a substitute for horseraddish was recorded in Georgievsk (Kolodeev 1853).
Crambe orientalis was evaluated and subsequently tried as a commercial fodder plant in Central Asia during the 1950 s- 1980 s (Amirkhanov et al. 1974, Kadyrkulova 1987). Numerous authors stressed the aesthetic value of the plant, for which it was widely cultivated in private gardens in Central Asia during the same period.
Introduction to Kyrgyzstan
Period of introduction
Neophyte.
The species was originally introduced In the late Soviet period, when the plants were used in experimental field cultivation (Kadyrkulova 1987). In the 2000 s, naturalised populations have already been found.
Pathways of introduction
Escape from confinement: Agriculture. Escape from confinement: Ornamental purpose other than horticulture. Unaided: Natural dispersal across borders.
The primary way of the species introduction was its cultivation on fields for fodder and in private gardens as ornamental plants. The species is known to run wild from the places of original cultivation and this was the cause of its introduction in the Chüy Depression (from fields) and around Bishkek (from gardens).
The secondary dispersal of the species occurs actively by wind. This was the cause of introduction in the Talas Depression in Kyrgyzstan, to which the plants have arrived from the neighbouring areas in Kazakhstan.
Source of introduction
Caucasus.
Native Caucasian populations were accessible as a source of cultivation in the Russian Empire and the USSR.
Invasion status
Naturalised.
The species is apparently naturalised in the Chüy Depression, where it has been repeatedly observed for nearly 20 years.
Evidence of impact
Agriculture - minor impact (may occur in arable lands). Native ecosystems - minor impact (may colonise natural landscapes from agricultural lands). Urban areas - minor impact (sometimes found along roadsides and in ruderal places).
Trend
Increasing (observed and inferred).
The species actively expands in Central Asia. Its recorded occurrence in Kyrgyzstan has also been growing constantly.
description: Published as part of Sennikov, Alexander, Lazkov, Georgy & German, Dmitry A., 2025, The first checklist of alien vascular plants of Kyrgyzstan, with new records and critical evaluation of earlier data. Contribution 3, pp. e 145624 in Biodiversity Data Journal 13 on page e145624, DOI: 10.3897/BDJ.13.e145624