Apium is a genus, as currently circumscribed by Plants of the World Online, of 12 species of in the family Apiaceae, with an unusual highly disjunct distribution with one species in the temperate Northern Hemisphere in the Western Palaearctic (Europe, western Asia, north Africa), and the rest in the temperate Southern Hemisphere in southern Africa, southern South America, Australia, and New Zealand. They are prostrate to medium-tall annual plant, biennial plant or perennial plant herbs growing up to 1 m high in wet soil, often and , and have pinnate to bipinnate leaf and small white in compound . Some species are edible, notably Apium graveolens, which is the wild ancestor of the commercially important celery, celeriac and leaf celery.
The genus is the biological type of the family Apiaceae and the order Apiales; the type species of the genus is Apium graveolens.
Species
, Plants of the World Online accepts the following species:
-
Western Palaearctic
-
Australia
-
New Zealand
-
Apium prostratum Labill. ex Vent. (also in Australia, southern Africa, and southern South America) - sea celery
-
Southern Africa
-
Apium prostratum Labill. ex Vent. (also in Australia, New Zealand, and southern South America) - sea celery
-
Southern South America
-
Apium australe Thouars
-
Apium chilense Hook. & Arn.
-
Apium commersonii DC.
-
Apium fernandezianum Johow
-
Apium larranagum M.Hiroe
-
Apium panul (Bertero ex DC.) Reiche
-
Apium prostratum Labill. ex Vent. (also in Australia, New Zealand and southern Africa) - sea celery
-
Apium santiagoensis M.Hiroe
-
Apium sellowianum H.Wolff
Former species
Species formerly placed in this genus include:
-
Apium bermejoi → Helosciadium bermejoi
-
Apium inundatum → Helosciadium inundatum - lesser marshwort
-
Apium leptophyllum → Cyclospermum leptophyllum - marsh parsley, or fir-leafed celery
-
Apium nodiflorum → Helosciadium nodiflorum - fool's-water-cress
-
Apium repens → Helosciadium repens - creeping marshwort
Ecology
Apium species, including garden celery, are eaten by the
of some
Lepidoptera species including
angle shades, common swift,
Hypercompe icasia, the nutmeg, setaceous Hebrew character and
turnip moth.