Callisia fragrans (basketplant)

Pictures

Picture	Title	Caption	Copyright
Title Habit Caption Callisia fragrans ground cover in disturbed dry forest. Saint Lucia, West Indies. January 2009. Copyright ©Roger Graveson-2009	Habit	Callisia fragrans ground cover in disturbed dry forest. Saint Lucia, West Indies. January 2009.	©Roger Graveson-2009
Title Habit, showing flowers and foliage Caption Callisia fragrans showing flowers and foliage, Saint Lucia, West Indies. January 2009. Copyright ©Roger Graveson-2009	Habit, showing flowers and foliage	Callisia fragrans showing flowers and foliage, Saint Lucia, West Indies. January 2009.	©Roger Graveson-2009

Identity

Preferred Scientific Name

• Callisia fragrans (Lindl.) Woodson (1942)

Preferred Common Name

• basketplant

Other Scientific Names

• Rectanthera fragrans (Lindl.) O. Deg
• Spironema fragrans Lindl.

International Common Names

• English: chain plant; inch plant; fragrant inch plant

Local Common Names

• Australia: purple succulent
• English: spironema

Summary of Invasiveness

Callisia fragrans is a reasonably common cultivated, ornamental, perennial herb. It can be grown as a pot or basket plant or as ground cover in tropical or subtropical climates. In these warm climates, parts of the plant may break off or be spread by gardeners and start to grow. Occasionally considered invasive, it is established on Gros Piton, a World Heritage Site in Saint Lucia. In this habitat, its rapid spread is beginning to threaten native forest and displace many indigenous species.

Taxonomic Tree

• Domain: Eukaryota
•     Kingdom: Plantae
•         Phylum: Spermatophyta
•             Subphylum: Angiospermae
•                 Class: Monocotyledonae
•                     Order: Commelinales
•                         Family: Commelinaceae
•                             Genus: Callisia
•                                 Species: Callisia fragrans

Notes on Taxonomy and Nomenclature

The basionym is Spironema fragrans Lindl. published in Edwards's Botanical Register 26: pl. 47. 1840. A synonym is Rectanthera fragrans (Lindl.) O. Deg. published in Flora Hawaiiensis 1: 62. 1932. However the accepted name is Callisia fragrans (Lindl.) Woodson published in Annals of the Missouri Botanical Garden 29(3): 154. 1942.

Description

Wagner et al. (1999) describes the plant as a "perennial herb; stems fleshy, up to 1 m long, branched, with long stolons at base. Leaves clustered toward the ends of the stem, scattered below, elliptic-lanceolate, 18-25 cm long, 3.5-4 cm wide, base prominently veined, clasping, ciliate, often striped with purple. Flowers in compact pairs of cymes arranged in panicles up to 0.6 m long, each cyme pair subtended by 3-toothed bracts 10-15 mm long; sepals white-transparent, scarious, lanceolate, 5-6 mm long; petals glossy, white-transparent, thin, wilting by noon, narrowly ovate, erose, ca 6 mm long; stamens 6".

Plant Type

Distribution

Native to Mexico, C. fragrans is a popular pot plant and is cultivated throughout Europe, Asia and the Americas. It also appears to be cultivated as a herbal medicinal plant in Russia (see http://www.callisia.org/). Countries in which it is only present as a cultivated plant are mostly not recorded in the following table. GBIF (2013) has 66 records from Mexico, 48 from USA, 8 from Puerto Rico, 4 from US Virgin Islands and only 1 or 2 from the remaining 10 countries.

Distribution Table

The distribution in this summary table is based on all the information available. When several references are cited, they may give conflicting information on the status. Further details may be available for individual references in the Distribution Table Details section which can be selected by going to Generate Report.

Risk of Introduction

Although the plant is not yet cultivated in all tropical and subtropical countries, it is likely to spread from where it is found; escaping into waste land around houses and more than likely establishing itself among native vegetation.    

Habitat List

Biology and Ecology

Reproductive Biology

Flowers are formed in late winter or early spring but spread seems to be by vegetative reproduction, with individual plants removed from the colony-forming roots. This can be accidental or more commonly, as a result of gardening activities. Some species of Callisia are wind-pollinated, but the flowers of C. fragrans are strongly scented, as the name suggest, and are presumably insect-pollinated (Kubitski et al. 1998). The fruit are small, three-celled, capsules.

Longevity

A colony in a vacant plot at Massade, Gros Islet, Saint Lucia has been present and increasing in size for ten years. It managed to survive a 5-month drought during 2009/2010 (R. Graveson, Saint Lucia, personal observation, 2012).         

Population Size and Density

Large perennial drought-resistant colonies are formed.

Nutrition

The rosette pattern of leaves and the dense colony may result in little rainwater entering the soil as most is collected by the plant.

Environmental Requirements

C. fragrans needs full or at least partial sunlight, relatively high temperatures (US Hardiness Zones  10b-11) and a more-or-less neutral soil (pH 6.1-7.8) (Dave’s Garden, 2013).

Climate

Means of Movement and Dispersal

Natural Dispersal (Non-Biotic)

Possibly by viable fruits but there is no record of this in the literature.

Intentional Introduction

Gardeners introduce C. fragrans to new areas as a garden ground-cover ornamental. Local spread is by individuals breaking off and rooting.

Pathway Causes

Impact Summary

Environmental Impact

Impact on Habitats

Globally C. fragrans tends to grow in disturbed secondary forest and moist semi-open areas. Where it has become invasive in the World Heritage Site in Saint Lucia, it grows on the steep middle slopes of Gros Piton. In this seasonal, semi-open, native deciduous forest it forms carpets on large rocks and the ground in between. The main populations of C. fragrans have established close to the main trail to the summit (Graveson, 2012).

Impact on Biodiversity

As it forms carpets it replaces indigenous species such as Callisia repens, Peperomia trifolia, P. myrtifolia and Gibasis geniculata (Graveson, 2012).

Social Impact

Globally there is no information, except for Saint Lucia.

In Saint Lucia the Gros Piton trail is an important source of income to the Fonds Gens Libres community. It is conceivable that if C. fragrans comes to dominate the ground cover in the middle elevations, the publicity given to that may negatively affect tourist numbers. In addition, it is likely that eradication of C. fragrans will affect the community financially, as they may have to use income generated from the guided walks to tourists to fund the eradication programme (Graveson, 2012).

Risk and Impact Factors

Invasiveness

• Fast growing
• Gregarious
• Long lived
• Proved invasive outside its native range
• Reproduces asexually
• Tolerant of shade

Likelihood of entry/control

• Highly likely to be transported internationally deliberately
• Highly likely to be transported internationally illegally

Uses List

Medicinal, pharmaceutical

• Source of medicine/pharmaceutical

Ornamental

• Potted plant
• Propagation material

Prevention and Control

SPS Measures

Prohibition of planting as an ornamental in high-risk areas would be a useful measure.

Public Awareness

This species is easily recognizable in the wild as it forms conspicuous colonies. If reported early, the patch can be physically removed with little difficulty. Thus, public awareness in high risk areas will aid in preventing this species from establishing itself in the wild.

Eradication

Despite C. fragrans being reported as invasive in some countries, little information is available on its prevention and control. It may be that its impact is not major enough to warrant prevention and control measures. Its size, semi-succulent texture and growth habit are similar to the invasive Tradescantia spathacea and methods used to control this plant may be suited to control C. fragrans.

Containment/Zoning

Technique suitable for eradication will also be appropriate for containment and zoning where complete eradication is not possible.

Physical/Mechanical Control

Hand pulling of small areas of C. fragrans infestation is possible but re-growth may still occur. Careless removal may cause further spreading of the basketplant.

Movement Control

Discouragement of planting in areas where there is a high risk of spread into native forest would be a useful measure.

Chemical Control

Larger areas need herbicide spraying with follow-up spraying for re-growth. Spraying two to three times over several months is effective with glyphosate (MEPA, 2013). The Australian Government (2013) also suggests glyphosate with or without metsulfuron. 

Gaps in Knowledge/Research Needs

A pilot scheme is required to look into details of a protocol for eradication, involving a mix of physical and chemical measures.

Research is required to investigate whether the formation of carpets of C. fragrans changes soil conditions in a manner which might affect tree seedlings.

In addition, studies are required to investigate the extent to which carpets of C. fragrans prevent water from entering the soil.

References

Acevedo-Rodríguez PT, Strong MT, 2012. Catalogue of seed plants of the West Indies. Washington DC, USA: Smithsonian Institution Scholarly Press, 1221 pp.

Atlas of Florida Vascular Plants, 2012. Atlas of Florida Vascular Plants. Florida, USA: University of South Florida. http://www.florida.plantatlas.usf.edu/

Australian Government, 2013. Permit to allow minor use of an agnet chemical product for control of various environmental weeds using helicopter spot-spraying equipment, Permit Number PER12363., Australia: Australian Government. http://www.farmoz.au/Permit/FARMOZ/PER12363

Charles Darwin Foundation, 2008. Database inventory of introduced plant species in the rural and urban zones of Galapagos. Galapagos, Ecuador: Charles Darwin Foundation.

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Dave's Garden, 2013. PlantFiles: Basket Plant, Chain Plant, Inch Plant. Callisia fragrans. Dave's Garden. http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/54577/

GBIF, 2012. Global Biodiversity Information Facility. Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF). http://data.gbif.org

Graveson RS, 2012. Survey of invasive alien plant species on Gros Piton, Saint Lucia. Project No. GFL / 2328- 2713-4A86, GF-1030-09-03. Project No. GFL / 2328- 2713-4A86, GF-1030-09-03, GFL / 2328- 2713-4A86, GF-1030-09-03. Catsries, Saint Lucia: Department of Forestry.

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Vander VN, 2003. The vascular plants of Majuro Atoll, Republic of the Marshall Islands. Atoll Research Bulletin, 503:1-141.

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Links to Websites

Contributors

01/06/12 Original text by:

Roger Graveson, Consultant, Saint Lucia

Distribution Maps

• = Present, no further details
• = Evidence of pathogen
• = Widespread
• = Last reported
• = Localised
• = Presence unconfirmed
• = Confined and subject to quarantine
• = See regional map for distribution within the country
• = Occasional or few reports

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