Month: May 2024

The grass family is defined by the following characteristics:
Habit: Herbs (or trees in the bamboos), fibrous roots 
Stems: Hollow-pithed, round, swollen nodes 
Leaves: Alternate, parallel leaf veins, with ligules
Inflorescence: grass spikelet, typically with 2 basal bracts (glumes) on a central axis and one to many florets, each consisting of a short lateral axis with 2 bracts (a lower, odd-veined lemma and an upper, 2-veined palea) and a flower
Flower: Typically bisexual, minute; perianth vestigial; stamens generally 3; stigmas generally 2, generally plumose
Fruit: Caryopsis (grain)

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Characteristics of the family (from Jepson):
Habit: Annual, perennial herb, woody vine, occasionally aquatic. 
Leaf: generally basal and cauline, alternate or opposite, simple or compound; petioles at base generally flat, occasionally sheathing or stipule-like. 
Inflorescence: cyme, raceme, panicle, or flowers 1. 
Flower: generally bisexual, generally radial; sepals 3–6(20), free, early-deciduous or withering in fruit, generally green; petals 0–many, generally free; stamens generally 5–many, staminodes generally 0; pistils 1–many, ovary superior, chamber 1, style 0–1, generally +- persistent as beak, ovules 1–many. 
Fruit: achene, follicle, berry, +- utricle in Trautvetteria, in aggregate or not, 1–many-seeded.
Genera In Family: +- 60 genera, 1700 species: worldwide, especially northern temperate, tropical mountains; many ornamental (Adonis, Aquilegia, Clematis, Consolida, Delphinium, Helleborus, Nigella). 
Toxicity: some highly TOXIC (Aconitum, Actaea, Delphinium, Ranunculus). 

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Characteristics of the Orobanchaceae:

Growth form: Root parasites, annual herbs, perennial herbs, or shrubs
Leaves: Usually simple, without stipules, opposite or spiral
Inflorescence: Spike or panicle
Flowers: Bilaterally symmetrical, subtended by showy bracts, superior ovary

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The Nyctaginaceae, commonly known as the four o’clock family, is a group of flowering plants that exhibit several distinctive characteristics:

1. Flowers: Have only one whorl rather than separate sepals and petals. They come in various colors, including white, pink, red, and purple. The flowers are usually arranged in clusters.
2. Stamens: Attached to the corolla tube or near its base.
3. Leaves: Leaves vary in shape and size. They are usually simple, alternate, and without stipules.
4. Habitat: Found in diverse habitats, including deserts, tropical forests, and coastal regions. They are distributed mainly in tropical and subtropical regions around the world.
5. Fruits: Range from dry capsules to fleshy berries. Seeds are often dispersed by animals.
6. Physiology: Many species exhibit “nyctinasty,” where the flowers open in the evening and close during the day.
7. Cultural Importance: Some members of the Nyctaginaceae family have economic importance as ornamental plants (Bougainvillea), while others are used in traditional medicine for their medicinal properties.