Indian Rape (Brassica rapa L. var. silvestris)

Flowering rape shoot, blue-green leaves	Flowering rape shoot Grass-green leaves, smaller flowers than oilseed rape

Distribution, Yield, Use:

• Distribution:
  Grown in Europe, Asia to Pakistan, Northern China, and mid Asia. Special agricultural importance in Canada, Sweden, and West Asia. Winter and summer forms dispersed. Somewhat fewer requirements for growth time and place than oilseed rape.
• Production and use See oilseed rape
  

Region of origin: Region of cultivation:

• Cultivation and Breeding:
  Field cabbage (Brassica campestris), a wild plant widely spread through Europe and Asia, is considered to be the progenitor plant of Indian rape. Indian rape was probably initially taken into cultivation in Europe in the middle ages. It grows lower than oilseed rape and offers a lower seed yield with less oil content. Winter resistant Indian rape varieties have been bred for every area in which over-wintering of oilseed rape is no longer satisfactory or the oilseed rape sowing would be too late. Recently, the main direction of use has been towards green fodder.
• Breeding aims:
  The breeding aims essentially correspond to those of oilseed rape. A main point is the production of many-leaved nutritious fodder varieties.

Adapted to HTML by R.Saedler