Salad Burnet

Names and Synonyms

Scientific Names

Accepted name

Synonyms

• Poterium minus
• Pimpinella sanguisorba
• Blitum sanguisorba
• Poterium sanguisorba

Regional and Traditional Names

Sources: Wikidata

Taxonomical Classification

This plant, known as Sanguisorbia minor, belongs to the kingdom Plantae within the phylum Streptophyta and the class Equisetopsida. It is further classified under the subclass Magnoliidae and the order Rosales, falling within the family Rosaceae. Ultimately, its taxonomic identity is defined by its placement in the genus Sanguisorbia.

Sources: The World Checklist of Vascular Plants (WCVP)

Distribution

This plant exhibits a specific distribution across the northern regions of Europe. It can be found growing within the coastal and inland landscapes of Denmark. Its presence also extends to the northern territories of Finland and Norway. Furthermore, the species is documented throughout the islands of Great Britain and Ireland. Together, these locations define its primary geographical range in the north.

Sources: The World Checklist of Vascular Plants (WCVP)

Botanical Identification

Ecology

The ecology of Sanguisorbia minor is characterized by its remarkable adaptability to diverse environments and a vast altitudinal distribution. This species can be found across a wide elevational gradient, ranging from sea level (0 m AMSL) up to high-altitude mountainous regions reaching 3600 m AMSL. Its habitat preferences are highly varied, allowing it to colonize both disturbed and natural landscapes; it frequently thrives in anthropogenically influenced areas such as crop fields, dumps, old fields, and roadsides, while also maintaining a presence in more natural settings like meadows, mountains, and stony places.

Elevational range max:

3600 m AMSL

Elevational range min:

0 m AMSL

Habitat :

crop fields, dump, meadows, mountains, old fields, roadsides, stony places

Life history

The life history of Sanguisorbia minor is characterized by a perennial lifecycle, allowing the plant to persist through multiple growing seasons. It functions as a hemicryptophyte, a life form where the perennating buds are located at the soil surface, typically protected by leaf litter or organic debris. This species exhibits a deciduous nature, shedding its foliage seasonally as part of its physiological cycle. Consistent with its classification as a hemicryptophyte, its growth strategy relies on these surface-level buds to survive unfavorable environmental conditions before regenerating during the favorable growing period.

Deciduousness :

deciduous

Life form :

hemicryptophyte

Lifecycle :

perennial

Morphology

The morphology of Sanguisorbia minor is characterized by its growth form as a non-woody herb, specifically classified as a forb. This species is a self-supporting plant that does not function as a climber, liana, or vine, nor does it exhibit parasitic behavior, maintaining an independent lifestyle. It is a terrestrial plant, lacking aquatic or epiphytic tendencies. In terms of stature, the plant exhibits a relatively low profile with a minimum height of 0.15 m, a mean height of approximately 0.279 m, and can reach a maximum height of up to 1 m.

Aquatic :

terrestrial

Climber :

self-supporting

Epiphyte :

terrestrial

Growth form :

herb

Growth form :

forb

Parasite :

independent

Plant height max:

1 m

Plant height mean:

0.279 m

Plant height min:

0.15 m

Woodiness :

non-woody

Physiology

The physiology of Sanguisorbba minor is characterized by a C3 photosynthetic pathway, indicating a metabolic reliance on the standard Calvin cycle for carbon fixation. As a non-carnivorous species, it derives all necessary nutrients from the soil rather than through the capture of prey. The plant's foliar morphology exhibits a highly consistent width, maintaining a mean and constant width of 4.5 cm across its developmental range. The leaves vary in length from a minimum of 8 cm to a maximum of 20 cm, resulting in a mean leaf size of 31.2425 cm². Furthermore, the plant demonstrates a mean Specific Leaf Area (SLA) of 205 cm²/g, a metric that reflects its leaf thickness and resource investment strategies relative to its photosynthetic surface area.

Carnivory :

non-carnivorous

Leaf length max:

20 cm

Leaf length min:

8 cm

Leaf size mean:

31.2425 cm²

Leaf width mean:

4.5 cm

Photosynthetic pathway :

C3

Specific Leaf Area (SLA) mean:

205 cm²/g

Reproduction

The reproduction of Sanguisorbia minor is primarily sexual, characterized by bisexual flowers that facilitate genetic diversity. The flowering period begins in May and concludes in July, during which the plant undergoes pollination mediated by abiotic factors and biotic insect vectors, specifically bees. Self-fertilization is notably absent in this species, necessitating external pollination to ensure successful fertilization. Following pollination, the plant develops dry, indehiscent fruits classified as achenes. These fruits are prolific, containing a significant quantity of seeds ranging from 101 to 1000 per fruit. The individual seeds are relatively small and uniform, with a mean width of 2 mm (ranging from a minimum of 2 mm to a maximum of 2 mm) and a mean mass of approximately 0.005298208375 g, though individual seed mass can vary between 0.00213 g and 0.0137 g. Once mature, the seeds are dispersed via an anemochorous syndrome, utilizing wind for distribution. Asexual reproduction is absent in this plant, making sexual processes and wind-driven dispersal the sole methods for propagation and population expansion.

Dehiscence :

indehiscent

Dispersal syndrome :

anemochorous

Flowering time :

May

Flowering time :

Jul

Fruit dryness :

dry

Fruit type :

achene

Pollination syndrome :

insect

Pollination syndrome :

bee

Pollination syndrome :

abiotic

Reproduction asexual :

absent

Reproduction sexual :

bisexual

Seed mass max:

0.0137 g

Seed mass mean:

0.005298208375 g

Seed mass min:

0.00213 g

Seed width mean:

2 mm

Seeds_per_fruit :

101-1000

Self fertilization :

absent

Sources: Global Inventory of Floras and Traits (GIFT)

Plant Parts

Sanguisorba minor has 3 reported plant parts identified across 3 scientific publications and several other databases that are studied for medicinal purposes. The most consistently reported plant part include leaf, root, stem.

Leaf

1. Plants (Basel, Switzerland)

Root

1. Plants (Basel, Switzerland)

Stem

1. Plants (Basel, Switzerland)

Chemicals

Sanguisorba minor has 22 reported phytochemicals identified across 3 scientific publications and several other databases. The most consistently reported chemicals include Gallic acid, ellagic acid, kaempferol, quercetin, 4,8-dimethoxy-7-hydroxy-2-oxo-2h-1-benzopyran-5,6-dicarboxylic acid.

Gallic acid

1. Dr. Duke
2. Phytochemistry
3. Zhongguo Zhong yao za zhi = Zhongguo zhongyao zazhi = China journal of Chinese materia medica

ellagic acid

1. Phytochemistry
2. Metabolic brain disease

kaempferol

1. Dr. Duke
2. Metabolic brain disease

quercetin

1. Dr. Duke
2. Metabolic brain disease

4,8-dimethoxy-7-hydroxy-2-oxo-2h-1-benzopyran-5,6-dicarboxylic acid

1. Phytochemistry

BETA-SITOSTEROL

1. Dr. Duke

CATECHIN

1. Metabolic brain disease

FAT

1. Dr. Duke

Tannin

1. Dr. Duke

Vanillic acid

1. Dr. Duke

Activities

Sanguisorba minor has 285 reported activities identified across 3 scientific publications and several other databases. The most consistently reported activities include Neuroprotective, Antibacterial, Antioxidant, Antitumor, Hypoglycemic.

Neuroprotective

1. Dr. Duke
2. The American journal of Chinese medicine
3. Metabolic brain disease

Antibacterial

1. Dr. Duke
2. The American journal of Chinese medicine

Antioxidant

1. Dr. Duke
2. Metabolic brain disease

Antitumor

1. Dr. Duke
2. The American journal of Chinese medicine

Hypoglycemic

1. Dr. Duke
2. The American journal of Chinese medicine

11B-HSD-Inhibitor

1. Dr. Duke

5-Lipoxygenase-Inhibitor

1. Dr. Duke

ACE-Inhibitor

1. Dr. Duke

ATPase-Inhibitor

1. Dr. Duke

Aldehyde-Oxidase-Inhibitor

1. Dr. Duke

Conditions

Sanguisorba minor has 5 reported investigations on conditions identified across 3 scientific publications and several other databases. The most consistently reported conditions include cognition disorders, myocardial infarction, oxidative injury, oxidative stress, tumor cell lines.

Cognition disorders

1. Metabolic brain disease

Myocardial infarction

1. Frontiers in pharmacology

Oxidative injury

1. Acta neurobiologiae experimentalis

Oxidative stress

1. Frontiers in pharmacology

Tumor cell lines

1. Food & function

Preparations

Sanguisorba minor has 8 reported preparations identified across 3 scientific publications and several other databases. The most consistently reported preparations include Essential oil, Polyphenol preparation, Sanguisorba minor extract (SME), decoction, ethanolic extract.

Essential oil

1. Journal of ethnopharmacology

Polyphenol preparation

1. Akusherstvo i ginekologiia

Sanguisorba minor extract (sme)

1. Acta neurobiologiae experimentalis

Decoction

1. Journal of ethnopharmacology

Ethanolic extract

1. Journal of ethnopharmacology

Hydro-ethanolic extract

1. Metabolic brain disease

Hydroalcoholic extract (se)

1. Journal of complementary & integrative medicine

Whole sanguisorba minor plant

1. Phytochemistry