Raphanus sativus L., Brassicaceae

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Present on Pacific Islands?  yes

Primarily a threat at high elevations?  yes

Common name(s): [more details]

Chinese: luo bo

English: cultivated radish, radish, wild radish

French: radis, radis cultivé, raifort, rave

Japanese: daikon

Samoan: lakisi, lakisi

Spanish: nabon, rábano, rábano blanco

Tongan: ulātisi

Habit:  herb

Description:  "Annual herb, often with fleshy root; stems stout, erect, much-branched above, 3-6 dm tall; lower leaves lyrate-pinnatifid, petiolate, sparsely hirsute to glabrous, the lobes dentate or denticulate, the leaves monomorphic, reduced upward; racemes elongate; sepals erect, the lateral pair slightly saccate, sparsely hirsute to glabrous; petals purplish to nearly white, with dark purple veins, 1.5-2 cm long, unguiculate, obovate with a long narrowed claw; pedicels straight, divaricately ascending, 1-2 cm long; siliques indehiscent, cylindrical to conical, 6-10 mm in maximum diameter, tapering from above base to a narrow beak, spongy within, lower member abortive; seeds subglobose, somewhat ridged, 3-3.5 mm in diameter; cotyledons conduplicate."  (Wiggins & Porter, 1971)

"Coarse annual herbs 3-12 dm tall, from greatly thickened taproots, freely branching, subglabrous to sparsely hispid.  Lower leaves 10-20 cm long.  Sepals 9-10 mm long; petals white to purplish, 15-20 mm long.  Body of silique 2-4 cm long, the beak 1-2 cm long.  Seeds 2-4" (Wagner et al., 1999; p. 412).

Description from Flora of China online.

Habitat/ecology:  In Hawai‘i, "sparingly naturalized on all the main islands, except Ni‘ihau and Lāna‘i, but especially common on Hawai‘i" (Wagner et al., 1999; p. 412). In Fiji, "cultivated on a small scale and also seen as a naturalized weed in canefields and waste places" (Smith, 1981; p. 707). In New Caledonia, "cultivé presque dans le monde entier. Il se répand parfois comme plante adventice" (Jonsell, 1997; pp. 88, 90). In the Galápagos Islands, "in waste places and disturbed ground" (Wiggins & Porter, 1971; pp. 565-566).

Propagation:  Seed

Native range:  Eurasia (Wagner et al., 1999; p. 412).

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	Skottsberg, Carl (1953) (p. 218)
Chile (offshore islands) Juan Fernández Islands	Isla Más a Tierra (Robinson Crusoe Island)	introduced invasive cultivated	Atkinson, Rachel/Sawyer, John (2011)
Chile (offshore islands) Juan Fernández Islands	Isla Más a Tierra (Robinson Crusoe Island)	introduced invasive	Danton, Philippe/Perrier, Christophe/Martinez Reyes, Guido (2006) (p. 557)
Chile (offshore islands) Juan Fernández Islands	Isla Más Afuera (Alejandro Selkirk Island)	introduced	Skottsberg, Carl (1953) (p. 218)
Chile (offshore islands) Juan Fernández Islands	Isla Más Afuera (Alejandro Selkirk Island)	introduced invasive cultivated	Atkinson, Rachel/Sawyer, John (2011)
Chile (offshore islands) Juan Fernández Islands	Isla Más Afuera (Alejandro Selkirk Island)	introduced invasive	Danton, Philippe/Perrier, Christophe/Martinez Reyes, Guido (2006) (p. 557)
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (US) Northern Mariana Islands	Rota Island	introduced	Andrews, S. B. (1990) (p. 32) Var. longipinnatus Bailey
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 invasive cultivated	Charles Darwin Foundation (2008)
Ecuador (Galápagos Islands) San Cristóbal Group	San Cristóbal Island	introduced invasive cultivated	Charles Darwin Foundation (2008) Observed in survey, no herbarium record.
Ecuador (Galápagos Islands) Santa Cruz Group	Santa Cruz Island	introduced invasive cultivated	Charles Darwin Foundation (2008)
Fiji Fiji Islands	Viti Levu Island	introduced invasive cultivated	Smith, Albert C. (1981) (p. 707) Vouchers cited: DA 11467, DA 10692
French Polynesia Gambier Islands	Mangareva (Gambier) Island	introduced cultivated	Florence, J./Chevillotte, H./Ollier, C./Meyer, J.-Y. (2011) Cultivée
French Polynesia Marquesas Islands	Hiva Oa Island	introduced cultivated	Lorence, David H./Wagner, Warren L. (2008)
French Polynesia Marquesas Islands	Hiva Oa Island	introduced cultivated	Florence, J./Chevillotte, H./Ollier, C./Meyer, J.-Y. (2011) Cultivée
French Polynesia Marquesas Islands	Nuku Hiva (Nukahiva) Island	introduced cultivated	Florence, J./Chevillotte, H./Ollier, C./Meyer, J.-Y. (2011) Cultivée
French Polynesia Marquesas Islands	Ua Huka (Huahuna, Uahuka) Island	introduced cultivated	Lorence, David H./Wagner, Warren L. (2008)
French Polynesia Society Islands	Moorea Island	introduced cultivated	Florence, J./Chevillotte, H./Ollier, C./Meyer, J.-Y. (2011) Cultivée
French Polynesia Society Islands	Tahiti Island		Fosberg, F. R. (1997) (p. 24)
French Polynesia Society Islands	Tahiti Island	introduced cultivated	Florence, J./Chevillotte, H./Ollier, C./Meyer, J.-Y. (2011) Voucher cited: J. Florence 5363 (PAP) Cultivée
French Polynesia Austral (Tubuai) Islands	Rurutu Island	introduced cultivated	Florence, J./Chevillotte, H./Ollier, C./Meyer, J.-Y. (2011) Cultivée
French Polynesia Austral (Tubuai) Islands	Tubuai Island	introduced cultivated	Florence, J./Chevillotte, H./Ollier, C./Meyer, J.-Y. (2011) Cultivée
Guam Guam Island	Guam Island	introduced cultivated	Stone, Benjamin C. (1970) (p. 289)
Guam Guam Island	Guam Island	introduced	Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Oliver, Royce (1979) (p. 83)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Hawai‘i (Big) Island	introduced invasive	Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. (1999) (p. 412)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Kaho‘olawe Island	introduced invasive	Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. (1999) (p. 412)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Kaua‘i Island	introduced invasive	Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. (1999) (p. 412)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Maui Island	introduced invasive	Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. (1999) (p. 412)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Moloka‘i Island	introduced invasive	Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. (1999) (p. 412)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	O‘ahu Island	introduced invasive	Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. (1999) (p. 412) Voucher cited: Forbes s.n. (BISH)
Japan (offshore islands) Bonin (Ogasawara) Islands	Bonin (Ogasawara) Islands		Kato, Hidetoshi (2007) As Raphanus sativus L. var. hortensis Backer f. raphanistroides Makino
Kiribati Kiribati	Kiribati (Republic of)	introduced	Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Oliver, Royce (1979) (p. 83) cult.?
Marshall Islands Ralik Chain	Enewetak (Ãnewetak, Eniwetok) Atoll	introduced cultivated	St. John, Harold (1960) (p. 328)
Marshall Islands Ralik Chain	Kwajalein (Kuwajleen) Atoll	introduced	Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Oliver, Royce (1979) (p. 83) cult.?
Marshall Islands Ralik Chain	Kwajalein (Kuwajleen) Atoll	introduced	Whistler, W. A./Steele, O. (1999) (p. 99) Not seen on this survey and may no longer be present.
Marshall Islands Ratak Chain	Majuro (Mãjro) Atoll	introduced	Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Oliver, Royce (1979) (p. 83) cult.?
Nauru Nauru Island	Nauru Island	introduced cultivated	Thaman, R. R./Fosberg, F. R./Manner, H. I./Hassall, D. C. (1994) (p. 110) var. longipinnatus Bailey
New Caledonia New Caledonia Archipelago	Île Grande Terre	introduced invasive cultivated	MacKee, H. S. (1994) (p. 45) Vouchers cited: Baumann 5270, MacKee 11860, MacKee 19733, Letocart in MacKee 41677 Spontané
New Zealand (offshore islands) Kermadec Islands	Kermadec Islands	introduced invasive cultivated	Webb, C. J./Sykes, W. R./Garnock-Jones, P. J. (1988) (p. 439) "A common casual in waste land near towns, sometimes established about sand dunes, a garden escape".
New Zealand (offshore islands) Kermadec Islands	Raoul Island	introduced	Sykes, W. R. (1977) (p. 103) Present status unknown.
Niue Niue	Niue Island	introduced cultivated	Sykes, W. R. (1970) (p. 77)
Palau Palau (main island group)	Palau Islands (main island group)	introduced	Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Oliver, Royce (1979) (p. 83) cult.?
Philippines Philippine Islands	Philippine Islands	introduced cultivated	Merrill, Elmer D. (1923) (p. 208) Widely cultivated.
Pitcairn Islands Pitcairn Islands	Pitcairn Island	introduced cultivated	St. John, H. (1987) (p. 35) Voucher cited: St. John 14994
Solomon Islands Solomon Islands	Solomon Islands	introduced cultivated	Hancock, I. R./Henderson, C. P. (1988) (p. 105)
United States (other Pacific offshore islands) Wake Islands	Wake Island	introduced cultivated	Fosberg, F. R. (1959) (p. 14)
United States (other Pacific offshore islands) Wake Islands	Wake Island	introduced	Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, M.-H. (1969) (p. 9) Not seen in 1961 or 1963.

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. 191)
Chile (continental) Chile	Chile (Republic of)		Hafliger, Toni J./Wolf, Matthias (1988) (p. 191)
China China	China (People's Republic of)	introduced invasive	Zhengyi, Wu/Raven, Peter H./Deyuan, Hong (2011) "Fields, roadsides, waste areas".
China China	Hong Kong	introduced cultivated	Wu, Te-lin (2001) (p. 111)
Indonesia Indonesia	Indonesia (Republic of)		Hafliger, Toni J./Wolf, Matthias (1988) (p. 191)
Mexico Mexico	Mexico (United Mexican States)		Hafliger, Toni J./Wolf, Matthias (1988) (p. 191)
New Zealand New Zealand	New Zealand (country)	introduced invasive cultivated	Webb, C. J./Sykes, W. R./Garnock-Jones, P. J. (1988) (p. 439) "A common casual in waste land near towns, sometimes established about sand dunes, a garden escape".

Indian Ocean
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Seychelles Seychelles Islands	Agalega Island	introduced	Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Stoddart, D. R. (1983) (p. 116)

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

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

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

References:

Andrews, S. B. 1990. Ferns of Queensland. Queensland Dept. of Primary Ind., Brisbane.

Atkinson, Rachel/Sawyer, John. 2011. Naturalized species in the Juan Fernández Archipelago, Chile. Unpublished spreadsheet.

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

Charles Darwin Research Station. 2005. CDRS Herbarium records.

Danton, Philippe/Perrier, Christophe/Martinez Reyes, Guido. 2006. Nouveau catalogue de la flore vaculaire de l'archipel Juan Fernández (Chile) [Nuevo catálogo de la flora vacular del Archipélago Juan Fernández (Chile)]. Acta Bot. Gallica 153(4):399-587.

Florence, J./Chevillotte, H./Ollier, C./Meyer, J.-Y. 2011. Base de données botaniques Nadeaud de l'Herbier de la Polynésie Française (PAP). (online resource).

Fosberg, F. R. 1959. Vegetation and flora of Wake Island. Atoll Research Bulletin 67. Pacific Science Board, National Academy of Sciences, Washington. 20 pp.

Fosberg, F. R. 1997. Preliminary checklist of the flowering plants and ferns of the Society Islands. Ed. by David R. Stoddart. U. Cal. Berkeley.

Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, M.-H. 1969. Wake Island vegetation and flora, 1961-1963. Atoll Research Bulletin No. 123. Smithsonian Institution, Washington. 15 pp.

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

Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Stoddart, D. R. 1983. List of the recorded vascular flora of Agalega. In: Sachet, M. H., D. R. Stoddart, and F. R. Fosberg. Floristics and ecology of Western Indian Ocean islands. Atoll Research Bulletin No. 273. Smithsonian Institution, Washington. 253 pp.

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

Hancock, I. R./Henderson, C. P. 1988. Flora of the Solomon Islands. Research Bulletin No. 7. Ministry of Agriculture and Lands, Honiara. 203 pp.

Jérémie, J./Hoff, M./Jonsell, B. 1997. Sphenostemonaceae, Anacardiaceae, Cruciferae. Flore de la Nouvelle-Calédonie et Dépendances. Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Paris. Vol. 21, 121 pp.

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

Kato, Hidetoshi. 2007. Herbarium records of Makino Herbarium, Tokyo Metropolitan University. Personal communication.

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.

Merrill, Elmer D. 1923. An enumeration of Philippine flowering plants, vol. 2 [reprint]. Bureau of Printing, Manila. 530 pp.

Skottsberg, Carl. 1953. The natural history of Juan Fernandez and Easter Island. Vol. II, Botany. Almqvist &l; Wiksells, Uppsala. 960 pp.

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

St. John, H. 1987. An account of the flora of Pitcairn Island with new Pandanus species. Pacific Plant Studies 46. Honolulu, 65 pp. [Privately published].

St. John, Harold. 1960. Flora of Eniwetok Atoll. Pacific Science 14(4):313-336.

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.

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

Sykes, W. R. 1977. Kermadec Islands flora: an annotated checklist. New Zealand Department of Scientific and Industrial Research Bulletin 219, Wellington. 216 pp.

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.

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.

Whistler, W. A. 1991. The ethnobotany of Tonga: The plants, their Tongan names, and their uses. Bishop Museum Bulletin in Botany 2. Bishop Museum Press, Honolulu. 155 pp. ISBN 0-930897-57-9.

Whistler, W. A. 2000. Plants in Samoan culture: The ethnobotany of Samoa. Isle Botanica. 234 pp. ISB: 0-9645426-6-8.

Whistler, W. A./Steele, O. 1999. Botanical survey of the United States of America Kwajalein Atoll (USAKA) Islands. Prepared for Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education and the U. S. Army Environmental Center. 111 pp.

Wiggins, I. L./Porter, D. M. 1971. Flora of the Galapágos Islands. Stanford University Press. 998 pp.

Wu, Te-lin. 2001. Check List of Hong Kong Plants. Hong Kong Herbarium and the South China Institute of Botany. Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department Bulletin 1 (revised). 384 pp.

Zhengyi, Wu/Raven, Peter H./Deyuan, Hong. 2011. Flora of China (online resource).