Aizoaceae

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

iAizoaceae
Sesuvium portulacastrum
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae Division: Magnoliophyta Class: Magnoliopsida Order: Caryophyllales Family: Aizoaceae Martynov
Genera
See text

The Family Aizoaceae (fig-marigold family or ice plant family) is a taxon of dicotyledonous flowering plants containing some 126 genera and between 1100-2000 species. They are commonly known as stone plants or carpet weeds.

The family is widely recognised by taxonomists, although once it went by the botanical name "Ficoideae", now disallowed. The APG II system of 2003 (unchanged from the APG system of 1998) also recognises the family, and assigns it to the order Caryophyllales in the clade core eudicots.

Most species in this family come from southern Africa, but a few are from Australia and the Central Pacific.

Most fig-marigolds are herbaceous, rarely somewhat woody, with stems growing either erect or prostrate. Leaves are simple, opposite or alternate, and more or less succulent with entire (or rarely toothed) margins. Flowers are perfect in most species (but unisexual in some), actinomorphic, and appear singularly or in few-flowered cymes developing from the leaf axils. Sepals are typically 5 (3-8) and more or less connate (fused) below. True petals are absent. However, some species have numerous linear petals derived from staminoides. The fruit is a capsule with one to numerous seeds per cell.

A few species (especially the Ice Plant, Carpobrotus edulis) have been widely introduced and become invasive. A species known as New Zealand spinach (Tetragonia tetragonioides) is grown as a garden plant in somewhat dry climates and used as an alternative to spinach in upscale salads.

[edit] Genera

Acrodon Acrosanthes Aethephyllum Aizoanthemum Aizoön Aloinopsis Amphibolia Antigibbaeum Antimima Apatesia Aptenia Arenifera Argyroderma Aspazoma Astridia Bergeranthus Berrisfordia Bijlia Braunsia Brownanthus Carpanthea Carpobrotus Carruanthus Caryotophora Cephalophyllum Cerochlamys Chasmatophyllum Cheiridopsis Circandra Cleretum Conicosia Conophytum Corpuscularia Cylindrophyllum Cypselea Dactylopsis Delosperma Dicrocaulon Didymaotus Dinteranthus Diplosoma Disphyma Dorotheanthus Dracophilus Drosanthemopsis Drosanthemum Eberlanzia Ebracteola Enarganthe Erepsia Esterhuysenia Faucaria Fenestraria Frithia Galenia Gibbaeum Glottiphyllum Gunniopsis Hallianthus Hereroa Herreanthus Hymenogyne Imitaria Jacobsenia

Jensenobotrya Jordaaniella Juttadinteria Khadia Lampranthus Lapidaria Leipoldtia Lithops Machairophyllum Malephora Mesembryanthemum Mestoklema Meyerophytum Mitrophyllum Monilaria Mossia Muiria Namaquanthus Namibia Nananthus Nelia Neohenricia Octopoma Odontophorus Oophytum Ophthalmophyllum Orthopterum Oscularia Ottosonderia Phyllobolus Pleiospilos Plinthus Polymita Psammophora Pseudobrownanthus Psilocaulon Rabiea Rhinephyllum Rhombophyllum Ruschia Ruschianthemum Ruschianthus Saphesia Schlechteranthus Sceletium Schwantesia Scopelogena Sesuvium Skiatophytum Smicrostigma Stayneria Stoeberia Stomatium Synaptophyllum Tanquana Titanopsis Trianthema Trichodiadema Vanheerdea Vanzijlia Wooleya Zaleya Zeuktophyllum

[edit] References and external links

• Bittrich V. H. E. K. Hartmann (1988). The Aizoaceae — a new approach. Bot. J. Linn. Soc. 97: 239-254.
• Cornelia Klak, Angeline Khunou, Gail Reeves and Terry Hedderson (2003). A phylogenetic hypothesis for the Aizoaceae (Caryophyllales) based on four plastid DNA regions. Amer. J. Bot. 90: 1433-1445. - on line here
• Aizoaceae in L. Watson and M.J. Dallwitz (1992 onwards). The families of flowering plants
• NCBI Taxonomy Browser

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Aizoaceae