Malvaceae & Euphorbiaceae characteristics and plants list
Malvaceae
Cronquist put the family
Malvaceae under the order Malvales, sub-class Dilleniidae and the class Magnoliopsida
characteristics:
Habitat | herbs or shrubs with watery mucilage |
Stem | with stellate hairs shaped |
Leaves | alternate, simple with free lateral stipules |
Inflorescence | cymose |
Flower | actinomorphic, bisexual, pentamerous, hypogynous. Calyx- sepals 5, gamosepalous often with epicalyx Corolla- petals 5, polypetalous, adnate below to a staminal column, twisted. |
Androecium | stamens many, United in bundle, monadelphous, epipetalous, anther celled reniform, Extrorse, pollen grains large, and spiney. |
Gynoecium | carpel 5 to many, syncarpous, ovary superior, style one, pushing through a hollow staminal column and divided at the top into as many branches as there are carpels, each branch ending into a stigma, placentation axile. |
Fruit | capsule or schizocarpic capsule. |
Plants list (Economically important plants)
Name | Gossypium herbaceum |
Parts | seed coat |
Uses | the cotton fiber of commerce |
Name | Hibiscus cannabinus |
Parts | stem |
Uses | fiber substitute for jute |
Name | Abelmoschus esculentus |
Parts | fruit |
Uses | vegetable |
Names | Hibiscus hirsutum |
Parts | cottonseed |
Uses | the oil that is hydrogenated to vanaspati |
Tree members | Thespesia populnea Hibiscus tiliaceus |
Woody herb | Abutilon hirtum |
Malvaceae & Euphorbiaceae characteristics and plants list
Euphorbiaceae
Systematic position
Bentham and Hooker placed the Euphorbiaceae as a natural order under the series unisexuales subclass monochlamydae and the class dicotyledons.
Characteristics
Plant | herbs, shrubs, or trees with milky and watery latex |
Leaves | alternate or opposite, simple, stipulate |
Inflorescence | raceme and spike, cymose, panicle or cyathium |
Flower | unisexual, incomplete, actinomorphic |
Perianth | 5 in number, sepaloid, much reduced, free or partially connate |
Androecium | the stamen in male flower one to numerous |
Gynoecium | in female flowers carpels 3, syncarpous, ovary superior, 3 chambered; ovules pendulous with a ventral raphe, style 3, stigma 3 or 6; placentation axile. |
Fruit | sehizocarpic capsule |
Seed | Albuminous, carunculate. |
Caruncle | a fleshy structure attached to the seeds helps in dispersal by ants. ( Lipid or protein ) |
Plants list (Economically important plant)
Plant | Hevea brasiliensis |
Parts | latex |
Uses | rubber ( para rubber ) |
Plant | Manihot glaziovii |
Parts | latex |
Uses | rubber |
Plant | Emblica officinalis |
Part | fruit |
Uses | medicine |
Plants | Ricinus communis |
Parts | seed |
Uses | castor oil |
Plants | Manihot esculanta |
Parts | tuberous root |
Uses | the source of starch (tapioca used as food) |
Herbs | Iragia sp. Acalypha indica |
Shrubs | Ricinus communis Jatropha gossypiifolia |