Bartsia trixago L., Orobanchaceae

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Present on Pacific Islands?  yes

Primarily a threat at high elevations?  yes

Other Latin names:  Bellardia trixago (L.) All.; Euphrasia trixago Vis.; Trixago apula Steven

Common name(s): [more details]

English: Mediterranean lineseed

Spanish: belardia, cuatro caras

Habit:  herb

Description:  "Erect viscid herb 10-70 cm high, simple or with a few ascending branches arising from the middle nodes, densely covered by soft glandular and often stiff non-glandular hairs. Leaves narrow-lanceolate to linear, 1.5-9 cm long, 1-15 mm wide, margins coarsely toothed, upper leaves with 4-6 pairs of teeth. Racemes dense, with many subsessile flowers, bracts becoming shorter and ± entire towards apex. Calyx 8-10 mm long. Corolla 17-20 mm long, purple to pink with a spreading whitish or yellowish lower lip, rarely entirely white. Capsule broad-ovoid to globose, 10-12 mm long, densely non-glandular-strigose"  (NSW PlantNET).

"Annual, broad-leaved, erect herbs, up to 0.7 m high. Leaves opposite, decussate, simple, sessile. Leaf blade 15-90 mm long, 1-15 mm wide, undissected, narrowly ovate or linear, base rounded or tapering or auriculate or truncate, margins dentate, apex acute or obtuse. Blade hairy, hairs gland-tipped and not gland-tipped. Flowers dense in racemes; predominantly pink or purple, very irregular, shortly pedicellate or subsessile, perianth 2 -whorled (with leaf-like bracts). Calyx 5-12 mm long, 4 sepals, some sepals joined (2 pairs). Corolla 12-25 mm long, 4 petals, all petals joined. Stamens 4 (in 2 pairs of unequal length), adnate to the perianth, all alternating with the corolla parts, free of each other. Anthers dehiscing via longitudinal slits. Ovary syncarpous, superior, 2 -celled. Ovules numerous. Styles 1, simple. Fruit dehiscent, a capsule, non-fleshy, 7-12 mm long, 5-7 mm wide"  (FloraBase, the Western Australia Flora).

Habitat/ecology:  "In Chile this species grows in the following environmental conditions:  Low altitude, interior valleys; coastal mountains, 500-2000 m; coastal areas, 0-500 m. Humid areas, with almost constant rainfall, short dry periods are possible (generally not longer than 1 month); somewhat dry areas where the drought may last 3-5 months, precipitations of 400-800 mm. are concentrated in winter. Fully exposed to the sun, level areas or slopes facing north; some shadow, some protection against direct sunlight, some shadow from vegetation, filtering about 20-40% of light; in shadow, steep slopes facing south or a vegetation cover which filters 40-80% of light"  (Chileflora).  In New South Wales, Australia, "grows in sandy soil, often in mallee or in disturbed sites or in crops" (NSW PlantNET).  In Western Australia, "amongst low trees, low (sclerophyll) shrubland; in gravelly soil, sand, loam, clay; occupying standing water, ex-grazing land, edges of ploughed paddocks; road verges; growing in gravel pits, in disturbed natural vegetation"  (FloraBase, the Western Australia Flora).

Propagation:  Seed

Native range:  Northern Africa, South Africa, Europe, western Asia; naturalized elsewhere (GRIN).

Presence:

Pacific
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Chile (offshore islands) Juan Fernández Islands	Isla Más a Tierra (Robinson Crusoe Island)	introduced invasive	Atkinson, Rachel/Sawyer, John (2011) As Bellardia trixago (L.) All.
Chile (offshore islands) Juan Fernández Islands	Isla Más a Tierra (Robinson Crusoe Island)	introduced invasive cultivated	Danton, Philippe/Perrier, Christophe/Martinez Reyes, Guido (2006) (pp. 475, 522, 551) As Bellardia trixago (L.) All. Voucher cited: Danton I(5/54)1449. "En RC, es una adventicia de la primavera que se introdujo probablemente con las importaciones de ganado y de forraje que se desarrollaron estos últimos años sin control sanitario".

Pacific Rim
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Australia Australia (continental)	New South Wales	introduced invasive	National Herbarium of New South Wales (2013)
Australia Australia (continental)	Australia (continental)	introduced	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
Japan Japan	Japan	introduced	Mito, Toshikazu/Uesugi, Tetsuro (2004) (p. 189) As Bellardia trixago
South America (Pacific rim) South America (Pacific rim)	Chile (Republic of)	introduced invasive	Belov, Michail (2013)
South America (Pacific rim) South America (Pacific rim)	Perú (Republic of)	introduced	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
United States (west coast) United States (west coast states)	USA (California)	introduced	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)

Also reported from
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
United States (continental except west coast) United States (other states)	United States (other states)	introduced	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013) Texas

Control:  If you know of control methods for Bartsia trixago, please let us know.