Scrophulariaceae A.L. de Jussieu
Fernweed family.
Scrophulariaceae, fernweed family.
Vegetative morphology. Plants dwarf shrubs, or low shrubs, or mid shrubs; 5–20(–30) cm high; with roots hemiparasitic on other plants (except Veronica); opposite or alternate leaves and axillary racemore, or spicate inflorescences mostly of bilabiate flowers and 2-locular, many-seeded capsules.; glandular viscid (Bartsia), or not glandular viscid (usually). Taproot present, or absent. Caudex present, or absent. Ground-level or under-ground stems horizontal, or vertical and often branched, or not developed horizontally or vertically; rhizomatous; elongate (rarely). Aerial stems erect (usually), or ascending, or decumbent; glabrous, or sparsely hairy, or densely hairy; stem hairs spreading, or erect, or reflexed. Leaves heterophyllous, or not heterophyllous; distributed along the stems, or in a basal tuft; alternate, or opposite; distinctly distichous (Barstia), or not distinctly distichous; simple; existing for a single season or less, or marcescent. Petioles present, or absent; winged, or unwinged; glabrous, or hairy; puberulent, or villous, or woolly; hairs less than the diameter of the petiole, or hairs more than the diameter of the petiole (if applicable). Petioles hairs spreading; floccose, or curved, or wavy (Pedicularis). Leaf blade bases truncate, or attenuate, or rounded. Blades (5–)10–40(–75) mm long; 1.5–15 mm wide. Blades spreading, or divaricate, or reflexed; straight, or somewhat curled; linear, or oblong, or lanceolate, or ovate, or obovate; veins pinnate, or veins palmate, or veins parallel, or appearing single-veined. Blades adaxial surface glabrous, or glabrescent, or scabrous, or hairy. Blades adaxial surface hairs pubescent, or pilose; simple, unbranched; sparse; white and translucent. Blades abaxial surface glabrescent, or scabrous, or hairy. Blades abaxial surface hairs sparse, or moderately dense, or very dense. Blades abaxial surface puberulent, or pubescent, or pilose. Blades abaxial surface hairs straight, or curved, or wavy; spreading (hairs long near the leaf axils; short and more sparse towards the leaf tip, if applicable). Blade margins lobed, or not lobed, or cut into linear divisions. Blade margins entire, or crenate, or dentate, or deeply divided; glabrous, or scabrous, or with non-glandular hairs. Leaf apices acuminate, or acute, or obtuse, or rounded.
Reproductive morphology. Flowering stems present. Flowering stems with leaves; glabrous, or hairy. Flowering stem hairs puberulent, or pubescent, or pilose, or woolly; simple (floccose); shorter than the diameter of the flowering stem, or longer than the diameter of the flowering stem; white or translucent. Inflorescence spicate, or racemose, or head-like; terminal (usually), or axillary; dense; oblong, or globose or subglobose, or cylindrical; (0.5–)1–10 cm long; elongating as the fruit matures, or not elongating as the fruit matures. Pedicels present, or absent. Flowers zygomorphic. Calyx sepals 4, or 5; fused; (2.2–)4–13(–20) mm long. Calyx green, or yellow, or purple, or black, or pink, or white or translucent; herbaceous, or petaloid. Petals fused. Stamens 5. Carpels syncarpous. Fruit a capsule.
Chromosome information. 2n = 12, 24, 28, 36, and 48.
Notes. In a paper given the provocative title "Disintegration of the
Scrophulariaceae", Olmstead et al. (2001), Amer. J. Bot. 88: 348–361,
summarised molecular and cladistic evidence for the unnaturalness of this
family. Their data indicated that the current Scrophulariaceae contained at
least five monophyletic groups (families) that also should include some
satellite families currently recognized as separate:
I - Scrophulariaceae s.s
- five tribes, e.g., Verbasceae, and also Buddlejaceae and Myoporaceae.
II -
Veronicaceae - five tribes, e.g., Antirrhineae and Gratioleae, and also
Callitrichaceae, Globulariaceae, Hippuridaceae, and Plantaginaceae.
III -
Orobanchaceae - two tribes, e.g., Rhinantheae, and also Orobanchaceae in the
traditional meaning.
IV - Calceolariaceae - tribus Calceolarieae.
V -
Stilbaceae - extended with one genus from current Scrophulariaceae.
One of
the investigated genera, Mimulus, did not fit any of the categories and
was equally close to Lamiaceae, Paulowniaceae and Orobanchaceae. This treatment
is too provisional and radical to be taken fully into account yet.
Cite this publication as: ‘S.G. Aiken, M.J. Dallwitz, L.L. Consaul, C.L. McJannet, L.J. Gillespie, R.L. Boles, G.W. Argus, J.M. Gillett, P.J. Scott, R. Elven, M.C. LeBlanc, A.K. Brysting and H. Solstad. 1999 onwards. Flora of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago: Descriptions, Illustrations, Identification, and Information Retrieval. Version: 29th April 2003. http://www.mun.ca/biology/delta/arcticf/’. Dallwitz (1980) and Dallwitz, Paine and Zurcher (1993, 1995, 2000) should also be cited (see References).