Month: March 2024

The Malvaceae, or mallow family, is characterized by the following features:

1. Flowers: Typically large, showy, and with five petals. They are radially symmetrical and have a wide range of colors, including white, pink, purple, and yellow.
2. Inflorescence: Flowers are commonly borne in clusters or solitary. The inflorescence can be terminal, axillary, or leaf-opposed, depending on the species.
3. Sepals and Petals: The sepals are typically fused, while the petals are usually distinct.
4. Stamens: Numerous stamens, often fused into a column surrounding the pistil(s).
5. Pistil(s): Composed of several carpels fused together. Superior ovary.
6. Fruit: Capsule or a schizocarp, which splits open when mature to release seeds.
7. Leaves: Leaves are generally alternate, simple, and palmately veined. Ovate to palmate to lobed. Often have stellate hairs.
8. Stem and Habit: Small herbs to shrubs and even trees.
9. Mucilaginous Sap: Many species produce a mucilaginous sap, which gives them a slimy or slippery texture when crushed. This characteristic is particularly common in plants such as okra (Abelmoschus esculentus) and marshmallow (Althaea officinalis).
10. Cultural Importance: Several members of the Malvaceae family are important for fiber, food, ornamental purposes, medicine, or wood. Examples include cotton (Gossypium spp.), hibiscus (Hibiscus spp.),  Theobroma cacao (cacao, chocolate), Cola nitida (cola), Abelmoschus (okra) and Ochroma pymamidale (balsa).

Link to Jepson key

Link to Jepson YouTube videos

The Salicaceae, the willow family, has the following charateristics:

1. Diversity: Contains around 56 genera and over 1,000 species.
2. Habitat: Found in temperate and subtropical regions around the world, often near water bodies such as rivers, lakes, and streams.
3. Deciduous Trees and Shrubs: Most species are deciduous, shedding their leaves seasonally. They can range from small shrubs to large trees.
4. Simple Leaves: Often alternate.
5. Catkins: Produce clusters of flowers called catkins, which often appear before or with the leaves in spring.
6. Dioecious or Monoecious: Salicaceae species can be either dioecious, meaning male and female flowers are borne on separate plants, or monoecious, meaning both male and female flowers are found on the same plant.
7. Wind-Pollinated: Flowers are typically wind-pollinated, lacking showy petals or attractive scent.
8. Cultural Importance: Often cultivated for erosion control and for their flexible branches used in basket weaving. Also cultivated for timber production, papermaking, and as ornamental trees.
9. Adaptations to Moist Environments: Many species have adaptations to moist environments, such as the ability to tolerate waterlogged soil or even grow in aquatic habitats.
10. Chemical Properties: Some species contain salicylates, compounds related to aspirin, which can have medicinal properties.

Jepson key to Salicaceae

Video describing identification of willows

Characteristics of the Liliaceae, or Lily family:
Bulbs or Rhizomes: Perennial herb from membranous bulb or scaly rhizome. These underground storage organs allow the plants to survive adverse conditions and produce new shoots when conditions become favorable.
Stem: underground or erect, branched or not. 
Leaf: basal or cauline, alternate, subopposite, or whorled. 
Inflorescence: raceme, panicle, umbel-like or not. 
Flower: 6 Sepals and petals in 2 generally petal-like whorls, often showy; stamens 3 or 6, filaments free or fused to perianth, anthers attached at base or near middle; ovary usually superior, style 1, entire or 3-lobed. 
Fruit: capsule or berry. 
Seed: 3 to many, flat or angled, brown to black.
Chemical composition: some species contain chemical compounds of medicinal or toxicological importance, such as alkaloids, glycosides, or other secondary metabolites.
Habitat: Liliaceae plants are found in a variety of habitats, including temperate and subtropical regions. They can be found in grasslands, woodlands, and even desert environments.

Jepson video showing a member of the Liliaceae

Jepson key to the family