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Asparagus plumosus

Remu

Asparagus-fern

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General Information

COMMON NAMES: Asparagus-fern, Fern-asparagus

TRADITIONAL NAMES: Remu (RR MK), Rimu (MG AK PL), Remu ‘Enua (MT)

GLOBAL DISTRIBUTION: NATIVE s.Africa

COOK ISLANDS STATUS: Introduced - Recent, Naturalised (slightly); Land, lowlands, gardens

SIGNIFICANCE LIST: Ornamental leaves

KEY FEATURES: Woody climber, to 4m. STEM slender, with tough, triangular spines at interals, and base of sub-branches. SUB-BRANCHES form a triangle in a horizontal plane, to 30x20cm; terminal branchlets with leaves. LEAVES (=cladophylls) cylindrical, to 5mm, ~10-30 per node, in one plane. FLOWERS 1-2 on terminal branchlets, minute, greenish white. FRUIT round, 5mmØ, ripening black.

Cook Islands Distribution

View Distribution Map

Southern Group: Present Makatea: Present
RR	MG	AT	MK	MT	AK	PL	TK	MN
+++	++	P	P	P	P	+	-	-

Northern Group: -
TN	MH	RK	PK	NS	SW
-	-	-	-	-	-

Key to Symbols

blank	no data
-	absent	L	localised
X	extinct 'naturally'	W	widespread
XQi	quarantine intercepted	R	recent
XQe	eradicated	?	query preceding category
P	present	T?	taxonomic query
S	seasonal	nn	present, said to have no name
O	occasional	?1	present, name not investigated
++++	very common	?2	presence not verified, no name recorded
+++	common	N/A	absent, name not expected
++	uncommon
+	rare
Cook Islands islands: RR =Rarotonga, MG = Mangaia, AT =‘Ātiu, MK=Ma‘uke, MT=Miti‘āro, AK=Aitutaki, PL=Palmerston, PN=Penrhyn, MN=Manuae, TK=Takūtea, TN=Tongareva (TS=Tongaleva Spoken, TW=Tongareva Written, they say "el" but write "r"), MH=Manihiki, RK=Rakahanga, PK=Pukapuka, NS=Nassau, SW=Suwarrow. After a Polynesian name: ^=orthography query. Countries and other: FIJ=Fiji, WT=Wallis & Futuna, SAM=Samoa, TON=Tonga, NIU=Niue, CK=Cook Islands, CKM=Cook Islands Māori, FP=French Polynesia, AUS=Australs, SOC=Societies, TAH=Tahiti, TUA=Tuamotus, MQS=Marquesas, MNG=Mangareva, PIT=Pitcain group, EAS=Easter Island, HAW=Hawai‘i, NZ=New Zealand, NZM=New Zealand Māori

Scientific Taxonomy

Asparagus plumosus J.G. Baker
SYNONYMS: Asparagus setaceus [mistaken, has cladodes in many planes]

TAXONOMY: PLANTAE; ANTHOPHYTA (=Angiospermae); LILIOPSIDA (=Monocotyledones); LILIIDAE; Liliales; LILIACEAE

Vouchers & References

Vouchers:
None Recorded.

References:
p.208 Neal - In Gardens of Hawaii
p.118 Hortus 3rd
p.103 Royal Hort. Soc. Index of Garden Plants
p.574 Tropica
p.1/163 A.C.Smith - Flora Vitiensis Nova
p.398a Whistler - Ethnobotany of the Cook Islands

Data Update History (information):
zB02, zD04a

Web Resources

Citation Information

McCormack, Gerald (2007) Cook Islands Biodiversity Database, Version 2007.2. Cook Islands Natural Heritage Trust, Rarotonga. Online at http://cookislands.bishopmuseum.org.
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