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(Last Modified On 8/9/2013)
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(Last Modified On 8/9/2013)
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Family
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BASELLACEAE
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Contributor
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W. G. D'ARCY
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Description
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Perennial herbs or vines, stems slender or stout and fleshy, glabrous; rhizomes sometimes bearing fleshy tubers. Leaves alternate, entire, often fleshy, sessile or petiolate, exstipulate. Inflorescences spikes, panicles or clusters, the flowers sessile or short pedicellate, bracteate, bracteoles 2 or 4, forming a calyxlike receptacle, sometimes accrescent. Flowers regular, hermaphrodite or perhaps sometimes unisexual, the perianth of 5 sepals somewhat united basally, imbricate; stamens 5, inserted on the petals, sometimes basally connate, the anthers introrse, 4-locular; ovary superior or /2 inferior, I-locular, the ovule solitary, basal, erect, campylot- ropous, the styles 3, terminal, united or not, the stigmas 3 or 1. Fruit dry or baccate, sometimes winged by the expanded perianth; seeds with bent or spiral embryo, perisperm sparse.
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Habit
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herbs or vines
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Distribution
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The Basellaceae includes five tropical genera, four of the New World, and only Basella in the Old World.
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Note
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The family has been allied with the Caryophyl- laceae and Chenopodiaceae. Its closest affinities may be with the Phytolaccaceae.
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Reference
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Baillon, H. E. 1888. Caryophyllaceae in Hist. PI. 9: 145. Hauman, L. 1923-25. Notes sur le genre Boussingaultia H.B.K., Anal. Museo Nacion. Hist. Nat. Buenos Aires 33: 347-359. Moquin-Tandon, A. 1849. Basellaceae In DC., Prodr. 13(2): 220-230. Steenis, C. G. G. J. van. 1957. Basellaceae in Flora Malesiana ser. 1. 5: 300-304. Ulbrich, E. 1934. Basellaceae in A. Engler & H. Harms, Die Natfirlichem Pflan- zenfamilien ed. 2. 16c: 263-271. Verdcourt, B. 1964. Notes from the East African Herbarium: XV. Kew Bull. 17: 489-501.
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Key
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a. Flowers distinctly pedicellate, strongly scented; perianth mostly opening wide to dis- play the anthers; fruit samaroid, flat, white, dry; rhizomes tuber bearing ...... 1. Anredera aa. Flowers mostly sessile, scarcely scented; perianth united to above the middle and partly closed around the anthers; fruit baccate, subglobose, nearly black, juicy; rhizomes with- out tubers ...... 2. Basella
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