Brassica juncea (L.) Czern., Brassicaceae

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Present on Pacific Islands?  yes

Primarily a threat at high elevations?  no

Common name(s): [more details]

Chamorro: mostaza

English: brown mustard, Chinese mustard, India mustard, Indian mustard, leaf mustard, mustard, mustard cabbage, Oriental mustard

French: choux faux jonc, moutarde brune, moutarde de l'Indie, moutarde de sarepta

Hindi: saiso

I-Kiribati: te kabiti, te kabiti n Tiaina

Spanish: mostacilla, mostaza de la China, mostaza India

Tahitian: pota tinito

Habit:  herb

Description:  "Glabrate and somewhat glaucous annual herbs 3-12 dm tall, branched above.  Lower leaves lyrate-pinnatifid, 10-20 cm long, 5-8 cm wide, upper leaves reduced, eventually becoming linear-lanceolate, margins usually entire, sessile, not clasping the stem.  Pedicels spreading, 8-15 mm long; petals yellow, 8-12 mm long.  Siliques erect, spreading, (2-) 3-4 cm long, the beak 4-9 mm long.  Seeds brownish red, globose, 1.5-2 mm in diameter, the surface inconspicuously reticulate" (Wagner et al., 1999; p. 400).

Habitat/ecology:  In Hawai‘i, "apparently escaped from cultivation and naturalized" (Wagner et al., 1999; p. 400).  In Fiji, "cultivated on a small scale and also seen as a naturalized weed in waste places and in canefields from near sea level to about 150 m" (Smith, 1981). In New Caledonia, "toujours trouvé comme mauvaise herbeé (MacKee, 1994; p. 43). "Elle n'est actuellement trouvée que dans les terrains vagues et constitue une mauvaise herbe dans les jardins et les cultures" (Jonsell, 1997; pp. 84, 86).

Propagation:  Seed

Native range:  "Asia, now widely naturalized" (Wagner et al., 1999; p. 400). Possibly of African origin (Smith, 1981; pp. 705-706).

Presence:

Pacific
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Australia (Pacific offshore islands) Norfolk Islands	Norfolk Island	introduced invasive	Orchard, Anthony E., ed. (1994) (p. 8) "A weed of agricultural land". Voucher cited: W.R. Sykes NI 495 (CHR)
Ecuador (Galápagos Islands) Floreana Group	Floreana Island	introduced cultivated	Charles Darwin Foundation (2008)
Ecuador (Galápagos Islands) Isabela Group	Isabela Island	introduced cultivated	Charles Darwin Foundation (2008)
Ecuador (Galápagos Islands) Isabela Group	Volcán Sierra Negra, Isabela Island	introduced cultivated	Charles Darwin Foundation (2008)
Ecuador (Galápagos Islands) Santa Cruz Group	Santa Cruz Island	introduced cultivated	Charles Darwin Foundation (2008)
Fiji Fiji Islands	Kandavu Island	introduced invasive cultivated	Smith, Albert C. (1981) (pp. 705-706) Voucher cited: Seemann 9
Fiji Fiji Islands	Vanua Levu Island	introduced invasive cultivated	Smith, Albert C. (1981) (pp. 705-706) Vouchers cited: DA 11481, Greenwood 301A
Fiji Fiji Islands	Viti Levu Island	introduced invasive cultivated	Smith, Albert C. (1981) (pp. 705-706) Vouchers cited: Greenwood 301, DA 11466, Gillespie 3548
French Polynesia Clipperton Island	Clipperton (Arue, Avera) Island	introduced invasive	Sachet, M.-H. (1962)
French Polynesia Clipperton Island	Clipperton (Arue, Avera) Island		Sachet, M.-H. (1962) (p. 93)
French Polynesia Gambier Islands	Gambier Islands	introduced invasive	Welsh, S. L. (1998) (p. 90)
French Polynesia Marquesas Islands	Marquesas Islands	introduced invasive	Welsh, S. L. (1998) (p. 90)
French Polynesia Marquesas Islands	Ua Huka (Huahuna, Uahuka) Island	introduced cultivated	Lorence, David H./Wagner, Warren L. (2008)
French Polynesia Society Islands	Bora Bora Island	introduced invasive	Welsh, S. L. (1998) (p. 90) Voucher cited: Grant 5050
French Polynesia Society Islands	Raiatea (Havai) Island	introduced invasive	Welsh, S. L. (1998) (p. 90) Voucher cited: Moore 217
French Polynesia Society Islands	Tahiti Island	introduced invasive	Welsh, S. L. (1998) (p. 90) Voucher cited: Grant 4527
Guam Guam Island	Guam Island	introduced cultivated	Stone, Benjamin C. (1970) (pp. 287-288) Occasionally cultivated.
Guam Guam Island	Guam Island	introduced	Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Oliver, Royce (1979) (p. 82)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Hawai‘i (Big) Island	introduced invasive cultivated	Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. (1999) (p. 400) Voucher cited: Fagerlund & Mitchell 229 (BISH)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	O‘ahu Island	introduced	Wester, Lyndon (1992) (p. 132)
Kiribati Tungaru (Gilbert) Islands	Tarawa Atoll		Swarbrick, John T. (1997) (p. 89) Presence not verified.
Marshall Islands Ratak Chain	Majuro (Mãjro) Atoll	introduced cultivated	Vander Velde, Nancy (2003) (p. 76)
Nauru Nauru Island	Nauru Island	introduced cultivated	Thaman, R. R./Fosberg, F. R./Manner, H. I./Hassall, D. C. (1994) (p. 109)
New Caledonia Récifs D'Entrecasteaux (D'Entrecasteaux Reefs)	Île Surprise	introduced invasive	MacKee, H. S. (1994) (p. 43) Voucher cited: Boulet in MacKee 31448
New Caledonia Îles Loyauté (Loyalte Islands)	Îles Loyauté (Loyalty Islands)	introduced invasive	Tassin, Jacques (2005)
New Caledonia Îles Loyauté (Loyalte Islands)	Île Lifou	introduced invasive	MacKee, H. S. (1994) (p. 43) Voucher cited: Hoff 1233 (NOU)
New Caledonia Îles Loyauté (Loyalte Islands)	Île Walpole	introduced invasive	MacKee, H. S. (1994) (p. 43) Voucher cited: Cherrier in MacKee 44044
New Caledonia New Caledonia Archipelago	Île Grande Terre	introduced invasive	Tassin, Jacques (2005)
New Caledonia New Caledonia Archipelago	Île Grande Terre	introduced invasive	MacKee, H. S. (1994) (p. 43) Voucher cited: Baumann 5268
Niue Niue	Niue Island	introduced	Sykes, W. R. (1970) (p. 75) Rare per Sykes. Voucher cited: CHR 170270
Niue Niue	Niue Island	introduced invasive	Yuncker, T. G. (1943) (p. 57) Voucher cited: Yuncker 9896 (BISH) "A weed along roadsides and in waste areas".

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)	Australia (continental)		Hafliger, Toni J./Wolf, Matthias (1988) (p. 145)
China China	China (People's Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2009)
Mexico Mexico	Mexico (United Mexican States)		Hafliger, Toni J./Wolf, Matthias (1988) (p. 145)
New Zealand New Zealand	New Zealand (country)	introduced invasive	Webb, C. J./Sykes, W. R./Garnock-Jones, P. J. (1988) (p. 405) "Roadsides, sandy beaches, waste land".

Indian Ocean
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Australia (Indian Ocean offshore islands) Cocos (Keeling) Islands	Cocos (Keeling) Islands	native	Orchard, Anthony E., ed. (1993) (p. 37)
Maldives Maldive Islands	Malè Atoll		Fosberg, F. R. (1957) (p. 19)

Additional information:
Additional online information about Brassica juncea is available from the Hawaiian Ecosystems at Risk project (HEAR).

Information about Brassica juncea as a weed (worldwide references) may be available from the Global Compendium of Weeds (GCW).

Taxonomic information about Brassica juncea may be available from the Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN).

References:

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

Fosberg, F. R. 1957. The Maldive Islands, Indian Ocean. Atoll Research Bulletin No. 58. Pacific Science Board, National Academy of Sciences, Washington. 37 pp.

Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Oliver, Royce. 1979. A geographical checklist of the Micronesian dicotyledonae. Micronesica 15:1-295.

Hafliger, Toni J./Wolf, Matthias. 1988. Dicot weeds, vol. 1. CIBA-GEIGY Ltd., Basle, Switzerland. 335 pp.

Jonsell, B. 1997. Cruciferae. In: Flore de la Nouvelle-Calédonie et Depéndances. Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Paris. Vol. 21.

Lorence, David H./Wagner, Warren L. 2008. Flora of the Marquesas Islands. National Tropical Botanical Garden and the Smithsonian Institution. Online database.

MacKee, H. S. 1994. Catalogue des plantes introduites et cultivées en Nouvelle-Calédonie. Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Paris, 164 p.

Orchard, Anthony E., ed. 1993. Flora of Australia. Vol. 50, Oceanic islands 2. Australian Government Publishing Service, Canberra.

Orchard, Anthony E., ed. 1994. Flora of Australia. Vol. 49, Oceanic islands 1. Australian Government Publishing Service, Canberra.

Sachet, M.-H. 1962. Flora and vegetation of Clipperton Island. Proceedings of the California Academy of Sciences. 4th ser., v.31, no.10. The Academy, San Francisco. .

Sachet, M.-H. 1962. Geography and land ecology of Clipperton Island. Atoll Research Bulletin No. 86. Pacific Science Board, National Academy of Sciences, Washington. 115 pp.

Smith, Albert C. 1981. Flora Vitiensis nova: a new flora of Fiji. National Tropical Botanical Garden, Lawai, Kauai, Hawaii. Volume 2. 810 pp.

Staples, George W./Herbst, Derral R. 2005. A tropical garden flora: plants cultivated in the Hawaiian Islands and other tropical places. Bishop Museum Press, Honolulu. 908 pp.

Stone, Benjamin C. 1970. The flora of Guam. Micronesica 6:1-659.

Swarbrick, John T. 1997. Weeds of the Pacific Islands. Technical paper no. 209. South Pacific Commission, Noumea, New Caledonia. 124 pp.

Sykes, W. R. 1970. Contributions to the flora of Niue. New Zealand Department of Scientific and Industrial Research Bulletin 200, Wellington. 321 pp.

Tassin, Jacques. 2005. Jacques Tassin (IAC-CIRAD), personal communication.

Thaman, R. R. 1987. Plants of Kiribati: a listing and analysis of vernacular names. Atoll Res. Bull. 296:1-42.

Thaman, R. R./Fosberg, F. R./Manner, H. I./Hassall, D. C. 1994. The flora of Nauru. Smithsonian Institution, Washington. Atoll Research Bulletin 392:1-223.

U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. 2009. National Genetic Resources Program. Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN). Online searchable database.

Vander Velde, Nancy. 2003. The vascular plants of Majuro Atoll, Republic of the Marshall Islands. Smithsonian Institution, Atoll Research Bulletin No. 503:1-141.

Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. 1999. Manual of the flowering plants of Hawaii. Revised edition. Bernice P. Bishop Museum special publication. University of Hawai‘i Press/Bishop Museum Press, Honolulu. 1919 pp. (two volumes).

Webb, C. J./Sykes, W. R./Garnock-Jones, P. J. 1988. Flora of New Zealand, Volume IV: Naturalised pteridophytes, gymnosperms, dicotyledons. Botany Division, DSIR, Christchurch. 1365 pp.

Welsh, S. L. 1998. Flora Societensis: A summary revision of the flowering plants of the Society Islands. E.P.S. Inc., Orem, Utah. 420 pp.

Wester, Lyndon. 1992. Origin and distribution of adventive flowering plants in Hawai‘i. In: Stone, Charles P.; Smith, Clifford W. and Tunison, J. Timothy. Alien plant invasions in native ecosystems of Hawaii: Management and Research. University of Hawaii, Cooperative National Park Research Studies Unit, Honolulu. University of Hawaii Press. .

Yuncker, T. G. 1943. The flora of Niue Island. Bishop Mus. Bull. 178. Bishop Museum Press, Honolulu. 126 pp.