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Comandra umbellata

Common name:	Bastard Toad Flax	Family:	Santalaceae
Author:	(L.)Nutt.	Botanical references:	43, 60
Synonyms:
Known Hazards:	None known
Range:	Eastern N. America - Michigan to Alabama.
Habitat:	Dry to moist sandy well-drained soils, especially those that are acid, from sea level to the sub-alpine zone[43, 60].
Edibility Rating (1-5):	1	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	1

Other Possible Synonyms:	From various places across the web, may not be correct. See below.
	Commandra umbellata[Sn1]
Other Common Names:	From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
	Bastard Toadflax [S,P], Bastard-toadflax [B],
Epithets:	From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets
	bella = pretty;
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Santalales. Sandalwood family

Physical Characteristics

Perennial growing to 0.3m. . It is in flower from April to June. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs). We rate it 1/5 for edibility and 1/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and requires well-drained soil. The plant prefers acid soils and can grow in very acid soil. It cannot grow in the shade. It requires dry or moist soil.

Habitats and Possible Locations

Cultivated Beds.

Edible Uses

Fruit; Nectar.

Fruit - raw[60, 105]. A sweet flavour[61].
The flowers are sucked by children for their sweet nectar[257].

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

Pectoral; Salve.

An infusion of the leaves has been used to treat lung pains and laboured breathing caused by a cold or other illness[257]. The juice of the plant has been applied externally to treat cuts and sores[257].

Other Uses

None known

Cultivation details

We have very little information on this species and do not know if it will be hardy in Britain, though judging by its native range it should succeed outdoors in many parts of this country. The following notes are based on the general needs of the genus.
Requires a well-drained moisture retentive lime-free soil[200].
A parasitic plant obtaining at least some of its nutrients from the roots of other plants[200, 235]. It is said to parasitize over 200 different species of plants in the wild[274].

Propagation

Seed - stratify for 3 months at 5°c and then sow in the greenhouse in a pot with a suitable host. Plant out when it is well established close to a mature host plant[200].

Suppliers

For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.

Web References

[V] Images from the Vascular Plant Image Gallery of the Texas A&M Bioinformatics Working Group.
[B] Data (Latin & Common names, other references) from the BONAP's Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
[HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database

References for Commandra umbellata (a possible synonym).

[S] Image from the Southwest School of Botanical Medicine

References for the family Santalaceae.

[CHINA] Draft Data Very detailed botanical/identification info. from the Flora of China.

See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.

Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.

References

[43] Fernald. M. L. Gray's Manual of Botany. American Book Co. 1950
A bit dated but good and concise flora of the eastern part of N. America.

[60] Hitchcock. C. L. Vascular Plants of the Pacific Northwest. University of Washington Press 1955
A standard flora for Western N. America with lots of information on habitat etc. Five large volumes, it is not for the casual reader.

[61] Usher. G. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable 1974 ISBN 0094579202
Forget the sexist title, this is one of the best books on the subject. Lists a very extensive range of useful plants from around the world with very brief details of the uses. Not for the casual reader.

[105] Tanaka. T. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World. Keigaku Publishing 1976
The most comprehensive guide to edible plants I've come across. Only the briefest entry for each species, though, and some of the entries are more than a little dubious. Not for the casual reader.

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

[235] Britton. N. L. Brown. A. An Illustrated Flora of the Northern United States and Canada Dover Publications. New York. 1970 ISBN 0-486-22642-5
Reprint of a 1913 Flora, but still a very useful book.

[257] Moerman. D. Native American Ethnobotany Timber Press. Oregon. 1998 ISBN 0-88192-453-9
Very comprehensive but terse guide to the native uses of plants. Excellent bibliography, fully referenced to each plant, giving a pathway to further information. Not for the casual reader.

Readers Comments

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Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future - Species Database. Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
WEB search engine by Rich Morris - Home Page- Contact Info
Blagdon Cross, Ashwater, Beaworthy, Devon, EX21 5DF, UK.
Website: www.pfaf.org Phone: 0845 458 4719/_44(0) 1208 872963

This page (UK) http://www.comp.leeds.ac.uk/cgi-bin/pfaf/arr_html?Comandra+umbellata
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