Mangelwurzel

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{{Taxobox | color = lightgreen | name = Mangelwurzel | regnum = Plantae | divisio = Magnoliophyta | classis = Magnoliopsida | ordo = Caryophyllales | familia = Amaranthaceae | subfamilia = Chenopodioideae | genus = Beta | species = B. vulgaris | binomial = Beta vulgaris }}

Mangelwurzel or mangold wurzel (Beta vulgaris), is a root vegetable of the family Chenopodiaceae, genus Beta (the beets). Its large white or yellow swollen roots were developed in the 1700s for feeding livestock. Being too coarse for table use, cattle are known to thrive excellently upon this plant, both its leaves and roots providing a nutritious food. The name Mangel-wurzel comes from the German Mangel/Mangold, "chard", and Wurzel, "root".

The mangelwurzel has a history in England of being used for sport (mangold hurling), for celebration (mangold lanterns at punkie night in Somerset), for animal fodder and for the brewing of a potent alcoholic beverage. It is also the source of the name for the English folk/pop/comedy musical group Adge Cutler and the Wurzels (now known simply as "The Wurzels" since the death of Adge Cutler in the 1970s).

Most city-dwellers in England have only the vaguest idea of what a mangelwurzel is, and tend to associate the vegetable with the stereotypical country bumpkin character in comedy. The word is even used as a double-entendre, for example by the character Rambling Syd Rumpo (Kenneth Williams). As usual, some entertainers from country towns embrace the stereotype, as above.

The first encounter with the mangelwurzel for many children may well be through the book Muddle Earth by Paul Stewart and Chris Riddell. First published in 2003 by Macmillan Childrens Books Ltd, the mangelwurzel is the staple diet of the trolls.

See also

• The British Scrumpy and Western band The Wurzels
• The British children's book and television character Worzel GummidgeTemplate:Vegetable-stub