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Larryleachia | |
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Larryleachia cactiformis | |
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
(unranked): | Angiosperms |
(unranked): | Eudicots |
(unranked): | Asterids |
Order: | Gentianales |
Family: | Apocynaceae |
Subfamily: | Asclepiadoideae |
Genus: | Larryleachia Plowes |
Synonyms | |
LeachiaPlowes (nonCassini) |
Larryleachia is a genus of stapeliad succulent flowering plants in the family Apocynaceae.
The flowering plants, also known as angiosperms, Angiospermae or Magnoliophyta, are the most diverse group of land plants, with 64 orders, 416 families, approximately 13,164 known genera and c. 369,000 known species. Like gymnosperms, angiosperms are seed-producing plants. However, they are distinguished from gymnosperms by characteristics including flowers, endosperm within the seeds, and the production of fruits that contain the seeds. Etymologically, angiosperm means a plant that produces seeds within an enclosure; in other words, a fruiting plant. The term comes from the Greek words angeion and sperma ("seed").
Apocynaceae is a family of flowering plants that includes trees, shrubs, herbs, stem succulents, and vines, commonly known as the dogbane family,. Members of the family are native to the European, Asian, African, Australian, and American tropics or subtropics, with some temperate members. The former family Asclepiadaceae is considered a subfamily of Apocynaceae and contains 348 genera. A list of Apocynaceae genera may be found here.
Larryleachia cactiformis is a stapeliad succulent, native to Namaqualand in South Africa, where it grows in rocky areas. Larryleachia cactiformis proves as difficult a member of the Apocynaceae family in cultivation as others in its genus.
Larryleachia marlothii is a summer-flowering succulent plant native to Namibia and southern Angola.
Larryleachia tirasmontana is a species of plant in the Apocynaceae family. It is endemic to Namibia. Its natural habitat is cold desert.
Phylogenetic studies have shown the genus to be monophyletic, and most closely related to the Richtersveldtia and Notechidnopsis genera of stapeliads. Marginally more distantly related is a sister branch of related genera including Lavrania and Hoodia . [2]
Notechidnopsis is a species of plants in the Apocynaceae first described as a genus in 1985. It contains only one recognized species, Notechidnopsis tessellata , native to Cape Province in South Africa.
Lavrania is a genus of plant in family Apocynaceae, first described as a genus in 1986. It is native to southern Africa.
Hoodia is a genus of flowering plants in the family Apocynaceae, under the subfamily Asclepiadoideae, native to Southern Africa.
Euphorbia is a very large and diverse genus of flowering plants, commonly called spurge, in the spurge family (Euphorbiaceae). "Euphorbia" is sometimes used in ordinary English to collectively refer to all members of Euphorbiaceae, not just to members of the genus. Some euphorbias are commercially widely available, such as poinsettias at Christmas. Some are commonly cultivated as ornamentals, or collected and highly valued for the aesthetic appearance of their unique floral structures, such as the crown of thorns plant. Euphorbias from the deserts of Southern Africa and Madagascar have evolved physical characteristics and forms similar to cacti of North and South America, so they are often incorrectly referred to as cacti. Some are used as ornamentals in landscaping, because of beautiful or striking overall forms, and drought and heat tolerance.
The Araliaceae is a family made of 52 genera and 700 species of flowering plants including perennial herbs, trees, vines and succulents. The family has large, usually alternate leaves, five-petaled flowers arranged in clusters, and berries. Some genera are used as foliage plants, such as Hedera (ivies).
Pachypodium is a genus of succulent spine-bearing trees and shrubs, native to Madagascar and Africa. It belongs to the dogbane family, Apocynaceae.
According to APG II, the Asclepiadaceae, commonly known as milkweed family, is a former plant family now treated as a subfamily in the Apocynaceae.
The genera of plants within the tribe Stapeliae are all to varying degrees stem succulents. Many of the species resemble cacti, though are not closely related, as an example of convergent evolution. The stems are often angular, mostly four-angled in cross-section, but in some species there are six or more, with some species of Hoodia having more than thirty angles. In size they vary from less than 2.5 cm/1" in length to over 2 m/6" tall. The leaves are in most species reduced to rudiments, sometimes hardened and thorn-like, arranged on bumps or tubercles on the angles. Some species, however, still have recognisable leaves, most notably the Indian species Frerea indica, and some members of Tridentea. Stapeliads are most abundant in warm, dry climates. In Africa, there are two separate regions where Stapeliads have most diversified: northeast Africa, and Southern Africa. Several species are endemic to the small island of Socotra off the Horn of Africa. The Arabian Peninsula, and most specifically the country of Yemen, contain another concentration of species. Several more are found in the drier parts of Pakistan, Afghanistan, India, Nepal, and Myanmar. A single species, Caralluma europea is found in Europe, in the very southern part of the Iberian peninsula. Stapeliads are often regarded as a climax group within the family because of their often structurally complex flowers. Certain aspects of these reproductive parts mirror the pollination systems in the Orchid family and represent a case of parallel evolution though both groups are quite unrelated and have developed similar, though not identical means to achieve the ultimate goal of pollination and therefore reproduction. Most stapeliads use flies as pollinators, that are attracted to odours resembling dung or rotting meat, emanating from the flowers. Many of the flowers also bear some physical resemblance to rotting animal carcasses, leading to their popular name of Carrion Flowers. However, not all stapeliads smell bad, or attract flies. Some species use beetles, bees, wasps, butterflies or moths as pollinators. Stapeliad flowers range in size from mere millimetres in species of Echidnopsis and Pseudolithos to those of Stapelia gigantea that can reach 40 cm/16" in diameter, and are some the largest of flowers to be found on any species of succulent.
The genus Huernia consists of stem succulents from Eastern and Southern Africa, first described as a genus in 1810. The flowers are five-lobed, usually somewhat more funnel- or bell-shaped than in the closely related genus Stapelia, and often striped vividly in contrasting colours or tones, some glossy, others matte and wrinkled depending on the species concerned. To pollinate, the flowers attract flies by emitting a scent similar to that of carrion. The genus is considered close to the genera Stapelia and Hoodia. The name is in honour of Justin Heurnius (1587–1652) a Dutch missionary who is reputed to have been the first collector of South African Cape plants. His name was actually misspelled by the collector.
Duvalia is a succulent plant genus in the tribe Stapeliae, milkweed subfamily Asclepiadoideae, in the family Apocynaceae (dogbane).
Leslie Charles Leach "Larry" was a Rhodesian taxonomic botanist.
The genus Quaqua falls within the tribe of plants known collectively as stapeliads. All stapeliads, including Quaqua, are Old World stem succulents. Species of the genus Quaqua are exceptionally varied and endemic to southwestern Africa, and locally very common in Namaqualand.
Stapelianthus is a genus of flowering plants in the family Asclepiadaceae, first described as a genus in 1933. The entire genus is endemic to Madagascar and is concentrated in the far south of the island.
Pseudolithos is a genus of succulent flowering plants of the family Apocynaceae, indigenous to Somalia, Yemen and Oman.
Tavaresia is a genus of plants in the Apocynaceae, first described as a genus in 1902. It is native to southern Africa.
Echidnopsis is a genus of succulent, cactus-like plants in the Apocynaceae, first described as a genus in 1871. They are native to eastern Africa and the Arabian Peninsula.
Piaranthus is a succulent plant genus in the tribe Stapeliae, milkweed subfamily Asclepiadoideae, in the family Apocynaceae (dogbane).
Rhytidocaulon is a plant genus in the family Apocynaceae, first described in 1962. It is native to northeastern Africa and the Arabian Peninsula
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