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Asclepiadaceae
 

The Asclepiadaceae is a former plant family, now included in the dogbane family Apocynaceae, according to the AGP II. The name Asclepiadaceae however still retains the epithet 'nom. cons.' ( = name to be retained). Asclepiadaceae is nested within the Apocynaceae sensu lato, and is thus referred to as Asclepiadoideae (Endress and Bruyns).

They form a group of perennial herbs, twining shrubs, lianas, or rarely trees but notably also contain a significant number of leafless stem succulents, all belonging to the order Gentianales. The name comes from the type genus Asclepias.

There are 348 genera, with about 2900 species. They are mainly located in the tropics to subtropics, especially in South America.

The florally advanced tribe Stapeliae within this family contain the relatively familiar stem succulent genera such as Huernia, Stapelia and Hoodia. They are remarkable for the complex mechanisms they have developed for pollination, which independently parallel the unrelated Orchidaceae, especially in the grouping of their pollen into pollinia. The fragrance from the flowers, often called "carrion" attracts flies. The flies pollinate the flowers.

There are many collectors of plants from this family. The unique flowers of these plants have stirred interest in many. A systematic method of collecting information about these plants using identifiers for the location and collector has been developed. More information and a field manual is available from the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. There is information and a huge image database of Asclepiadaceae at the site established by Dr.'s Loukie Viljoen and Fabio d'Alessi. The site has a unique reference algorithm for ease of use and quick access to the information. Dr. Friederike Hübner has a site also rich with information as well many useful links. Chris Moore maintains a gallery with many pictures and links . Martin Heigan maintains a site with a full collection to "share the beauty from the Deserts of South Africa..!"

Many new and exciting hybrids have been formed due to the unique fertilization method of the flowers. Dr. Gerald S.Barad and Dr. Friederike Hübner as well as Iztok Mulej are experts in this area of cultivation.

Genera

Reference

  • Endress & Bruyn, "A revised classification of the Apocynaceae". Botanical Review 66: 1-56.

External links

Gentianales | Plant families

Singrøn-familien | Seidenpflanzengewächse | Asclepiadaceae | Asclepiadaceae | Asclepiadaceae | Klemaliniai augalai | Asclepiadaceae | ガガイモ科 | Svalerotfamilien | Trojeściowate | 蘿藦科

 

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the "Asclepiadaceae".

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