Ardisia | |
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Ardisia crenata | |
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Clade: | Asterids |
Order: | Ericales |
Family: | Primulaceae |
Subfamily: | Myrsinoideae |
Genus: | Ardisia Sw. |
Type species | |
Ardisia tinifolia | |
Species | |
Over 700, see List of Ardisia species | |
Synonyms | |
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Ardisia (coralberry or marlberry) is a genus of flowering plants in the family Primulaceae. It was in the former Myrsinaceae family now recognised as the myrsine sub-family Myrsinoideae. [1] They are distributed in the Americas, Asia, Australia, and the Pacific Islands, mainly in the tropics. [2] [3] There are over 700 accepted species. [4] One species, Ardisia japonica is one of the 50 fundamental herbs in traditional Chinese medicine.
These are trees, shrubs, and subshrubs. Most have alternately arranged leaves. Flowers are borne in many forms of inflorescence. The flowers have usually 4 or 5 green sepals and a bell-shaped corolla of usually 4 or 5 white or pink petals. The fruit is a somewhat fleshy drupe. [2] [3] The defining characteristic of the genus is the small tube formed at the center of the flower by the stamens, which are joined at their bases. [5]
Several Ardisia species are the sources of the chemical compounds known as ardisiaquinones. [6]
Selected species include: [4]
Hydrangeaceae is a family of flowering plants in the order Cornales, with a wide distribution in Asia and North America, and locally in southeastern Europe.
The Buxales are a small order of eudicot flowering plants, recognized by the APG IV system of 2016. The order includes the family Buxaceae; the families Didymelaceae and Haptanthaceae may also be recognized or may be included in the Buxaceae. Many members of the order are evergreen shrubs or trees, although some are herbaceous perennials. They have separate "male" (staminate) and "female" (carpellate) flowers, mostly on the same plant. Some species are of economic importance either for the wood they produce or as ornamental plants.
The Primulaceae, commonly known as the primrose family, are a family of herbaceous and woody flowering plants including some favourite garden plants and wildflowers. Most are perennial though some species, such as scarlet pimpernel, are annuals.
Garryaceae is a small family of plants known commonly as the silktassels. It contains two genera:
Elaeaocarpaceae is a family of flowering plants. The family contains approximately 615 species of trees and shrubs in 12 genera. The largest genera are Elaeocarpus, with about 350 species, and Sloanea, with about 120.
Myrica is a genus of about 35–50 species of small trees and shrubs in the family Myricaceae, order Fagales. The genus has a wide distribution, including Africa, Asia, Europe, North America and South America, and missing only from Australia. Some botanists split the genus into two genera on the basis of the catkin and fruit structure, restricting Myrica to a few species, and treating the others in Morella.
Schisandraceae is a family of flowering plants with 3 known genera and a total of 92 known species. Such a family has been recognized by most taxonomists, at least for the past several decades. Before that, the plants concerned were assigned to family Magnoliaceae and Illiciaceae.
Theophrastoideae is a small subfamily of flowering plants in the family Primulaceae. It was formerly recognized as a separate family Theophrastaceae. As previously circumscribed, the family consisted of eight genera and 95 species of trees or shrubs, native to tropical regions of the Americas.
Tilioideae is a flowering plant subfamily in the family Malvaceae, though it was formerly considered a large group, placed at family rank and called Tiliaceae.
The genus Helwingia consists of shrubs or rarely small trees native to eastern Asia, the Himalayas, and northern Indochina. It is the only genus in the family Helwingiaceae.
Parathesis is a genus of flowering plants in the family Primulaceae. There are about 95 species distributed from Mexico to South America and the Caribbean. Plants of this genus can be distinguished by glandular papillae on the lobes of the flower corolla and bright yellow anthers.
Stylogyne is a genus of shrubs and trees in the family Primulaceae. Its members are found throughout tropical parts of the Americas, with the greatest diversity in South America. It is closely related to the genera Ardisia and Geissanthus, and various species have been transferred between the three genera. All three were formerly placed in the family Myrsinaceae, which is now treated as a subfamily (Myrsinoideae) of the Primulaceae.
Myrsine is a genus of flowering plants in the family Primulaceae. It was formerly placed in the family Myrsinaceae before this was merged into the Primulaceae. It is found nearly worldwide, primarily in tropical and subtropical areas. It contains about 200 species, including several notable radiations, such as the matipo of New Zealand and the kōlea of Hawaiʻi. In the United States, members of this genus are known as colicwood. Some species, especially M. africana, are grown as ornamental shrubs.
Embelia is a genus of climbing shrubs once placed in the family Myrsinaceae, which is now included in the Primulaceae. There are about 130 species which occur in tropical and subtropical areas across a wide range including Africa and Madagascar and from eastern Asia to the Pacific Islands as well as Australia including:
Stilbaceae is a family of flowering plants in the order Lamiales.
PtaeroxylaceaeJuss. are a small family of Southern African indigenous trees and woody lianes, most of them from Madagascar, comprising only two genera. Such a family was not recognized by the APG II system of classification (2003), which noted that it was a synonym of Rutaceae. The APG III system of 2009, an updated version of the last system, did not mention the family. All species within this family are included within Rutaceae.
John James Pipoly III is an American botanist and plant collector. He is a leading expert on the systematics and taxonomy of the genus Ardisia within the Myrsinoideae, as well as the family Clusiaceae.