Indian mustard
Brassica x juncea
family
Brassicaceae
origin
Exotic
declaration
NIL
For information only
Common names
Indian mustard, Brown mustard, Chinese mustard, Gai choy, Leaf mustard, Oriental mustard.
A short-lived herbaceous plant with upright stems growing up to 1.8m tall. Its leaves are initially borne in a rosette at the base of the plant and are later alternately arranged along the stems. Its lower leaves are relatively large (up to 30 cm long and 15 cm wide) and deeply lobed while its upper leaves are smaller and elongated in shape. Its yellow flowers are arranged in elongating clusters at the tips of the branches. Its elongated fruit (2-6 cm long and 2-5 mm wide) have two compartments and end in a tapering 'beak' 4-10 mm long.
Impact
Impact
In cultivation, B. juncea seed may escape harvest, allowing it to persist and become a weed of subsequent crops. It is a major weed in Australia, and considered a minor weed in Canada (Office of the Gene Technology Regulator, 2008). In Canada it is less common as a volunteer weed than other closely related species, such as Brassica napus, perhaps as a result of reduced shattering in B. juncea limiting its spread (Canadian Food Inspection Agency, 2008) Some Brassica species have been shown to have an allelopathic effect on native species. Brassica nigra has been shown to inhibit arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi, which can prevent the establishment of native plants dependent on this symbiosis (Pakpour and Klironomos, 2015; Maltz et al., 2016). Extracts from B. juncea, B. napus and B. rapa were shown to reduce germination rate, seedling root, hypocotyl length and fresh and dry weight in sunflower (Jafariehyazdi and Javidfar, 2011).
Location
Location
Characteristics
Characteristics
Similar Species
Similar Species
In cultivation, B. juncea seed may escape harvest, allowing it to persist and become a weed of subsequent crops. It is a major weed in Australia, and considered a minor weed in Canada (Office of the Gene Technology Regulator, 2008). In Canada it is less common as a volunteer weed than other closely related species, such as Brassica napus, perhaps as a result of reduced shattering in B. juncea limiting its spread (Canadian Food Inspection Agency, 2008) Some Brassica species have been shown to have an allelopathic effect on native species. Brassica nigra has been shown to inhibit arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi, which can prevent the establishment of native plants dependent on this symbiosis (Pakpour and Klironomos, 2015; Maltz et al., 2016). Extracts from B. juncea, B. napus and B. rapa were shown to reduce germination rate, seedling root, hypocotyl length and fresh and dry weight in sunflower (Jafariehyazdi and Javidfar, 2011).
