Restionaceae
Encyclopedia
Restionaceae, also called restiads, is the botanical name
for a family
of rush-like flowering plants native to the Southern Hemisphere.
in overall appearance. They belong to a group of monocotyledon
s that include several superficially similar families such as the sedges
, rushes
and true grasses
.
and Australia
, and are often dominant elements of the flora in Mediterranean climates of South Africa
and Western Australia
. Their presence as the dominant group in the Western Cape led to this plant community being referred to as the Fynbos (Afrikaans
, 'fine bush') community A few species have spread into southeast Asia
, and there is a single South America
n species.
A number of the African species have become popular as garden ornamentals in many parts of the world, some being similar to bamboo
in their vigorous cane-like stems and their large size.
It is also a type of South African fynbos.
The APG II system
, of 2003 (unchanged from the APG system
, 1998), recognizes this family and assigns it to the order Poales
, in the clade commelinids
of the monocots.
The Cronquist system
, of 1981, also recognized this family and placed it in the order Restionales
, in the subclass Commelinidae
in class Liliopsida
in division Magnoliophyta.
Botanical name
A botanical name is a formal scientific name conforming to the International Code of Botanical Nomenclature and, if it concerns a plant cultigen, the additional cultivar and/or Group epithets must conform to the International Code of Nomenclature for Cultivated Plants...
for a family
Family (biology)
In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...
of rush-like flowering plants native to the Southern Hemisphere.
Description
The family consists of tufted or rhizomatous herbaceous plants, superficially rush-likeJuncaceae
Juncaceae, the rush family, are a monocotyledonous family of flowering plants. There are eight genera and about 400 species. Members of the Juncaceae are slow-growing, rhizomatous, herbaceous plants, and they may superficially resemble grasses. They often grow on infertile soils in a wide range...
in overall appearance. They belong to a group of monocotyledon
Monocotyledon
Monocotyledons, also known as monocots, are one of two major groups of flowering plants that are traditionally recognized, the other being dicotyledons, or dicots. Monocot seedlings typically have one cotyledon , in contrast to the two cotyledons typical of dicots...
s that include several superficially similar families such as the sedges
Cyperaceae
Cyperaceae are a family of monocotyledonous graminoid flowering plants known as sedges, which superficially resemble grasses or rushes. The family is large, with some 5,500 species described in about 109 genera. These species are widely distributed, with the centers of diversity for the group...
, rushes
Juncaceae
Juncaceae, the rush family, are a monocotyledonous family of flowering plants. There are eight genera and about 400 species. Members of the Juncaceae are slow-growing, rhizomatous, herbaceous plants, and they may superficially resemble grasses. They often grow on infertile soils in a wide range...
and true grasses
Poaceae
The Poaceae is a large and nearly ubiquitous family of flowering plants. Members of this family are commonly called grasses, although the term "grass" is also applied to plants that are not in the Poaceae lineage, including the rushes and sedges...
.
Distribution
Plants in the family are primarily distributed in southern AfricaAfrica
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
and Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, and are often dominant elements of the flora in Mediterranean climates of South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
and Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
. Their presence as the dominant group in the Western Cape led to this plant community being referred to as the Fynbos (Afrikaans
Afrikaans
Afrikaans is a West Germanic language, spoken natively in South Africa and Namibia. It is a daughter language of Dutch, originating in its 17th century dialects, collectively referred to as Cape Dutch .Afrikaans is a daughter language of Dutch; see , , , , , .Afrikaans was historically called Cape...
, 'fine bush') community A few species have spread into southeast Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
, and there is a single South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
n species.
A number of the African species have become popular as garden ornamentals in many parts of the world, some being similar to bamboo
Bamboo
Bamboo is a group of perennial evergreens in the true grass family Poaceae, subfamily Bambusoideae, tribe Bambuseae. Giant bamboos are the largest members of the grass family....
in their vigorous cane-like stems and their large size.
It is also a type of South African fynbos.
Classification
The Restionaceae family has been recognized by most taxonomists. The AP-Website [May 2006] assumes 58 genera and 520 species, which agrees well with the Flora of China.The APG II system
APG II system
The APG II system of plant classification is the second, now obsolete, version of a modern, mostly molecular-based, system of plant taxonomy that was published in April 2003 by the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group. It was a revision of the first APG system, published in 1998, and was superseded in 2009...
, of 2003 (unchanged from the APG system
APG system
The APG system of plant classification is the first, now obsolete, version of a modern, mostly molecular-based, system of plant taxonomy that was published in 1998 by the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group. It was superseded in 2003 by a revision, the APG II system, and then in 2009 by a further...
, 1998), recognizes this family and assigns it to the order Poales
Poales
Poales is a large order of flowering plants in the monocotyledons, and includes families of plants such as the grasses, bromeliads, and sedges. Sixteen plant families are currently recognized by botanists to be part of Poales....
, in the clade commelinids
Commelinids
In plant taxonomy, commelinids is a name used by the APG III system for a clade within the monocots, which in its turn is a clade within the angiosperms. The commelinids are the only clade that the APG has informally named within the monocots...
of the monocots.
The Cronquist system
Cronquist system
The Cronquist system is a taxonomic classification system of flowering plants. It was developed by Arthur Cronquist in his texts An Integrated System of Classification of Flowering Plants and The Evolution and Classification of Flowering Plants .Cronquist's system places flowering plants into two...
, of 1981, also recognized this family and placed it in the order Restionales
Restionales
Restionales is a botanical name for an order of flowering plants. In the Cronquist system it is used for an order and circumscribed as:* order Restionales*: family Flagellariaceae...
, in the subclass Commelinidae
Commelinidae
Commelinidae is a botanical name at the rank of subclass. Circumscription of the subclass will vary with the taxonomic system being used ; the only requirement being that it includes the family Commelinaceae...
in class Liliopsida
Liliopsida
Liliopsida is a botanical name for the class containing the family Liliaceae . It is considered synonymous with the name monocotyledon. Publication of the name is credited to Scopoli : see author citation...
in division Magnoliophyta.
Genera
There are 58 genera in the Restionaceae:- AlexgeorgeaAlexgeorgeaAlexgeorgea is a genus of three plant species found in Western Australia belonging to the family Restionaceae named in honour of the botanist Alex George in 1976...
, Anthochortus, Askidiosperma, Calopsis, Calorophus, Cannomois, Ceratocaryum, Chaetanthus, Chondropetalum, Coleocarya, Dielsia, Dovea, ElegiaElegia (genus)Elegia is a genus of grass-like plants in family Restionaceae. The genus includes 32 species endemic to South Africa. Some are grown as ornamentals in gardens....
, EmpodismaEmpodismaEmpodisma is a genus of herbaceous rush-like plants in the family, Restionaceae....
, Harperia, Hopkinsia, Hydrophilus, Hypodiscus, HypolaenaHypolaenaHypolaena is a plant genus in the family Restionaceae, endemic to Australia.Species include:*Hypolaena caespitosa B.G.Briggs & L.A.S.Johnson*Hypolaena exsulca R.Br.*Hypolaena fastigiata R.Br...
, Ischyrolepis, Lepidobolus, Leptocarpus, LepyrodiaLepyrodiaLepyrodia is a plant genus in the family Restionaceae, endemic to AustraliaSpecies include:*Lepyrodia anarthria F.Muell.*Lepyrodia drummondiana Steud.*Lepyrodia flexuosa L.A.S.Johnson & O.D.Evans...
, Loxocarya, Mastersiella, Meeboldina, Megalotheca, Nevillea, Onychosepalum, Phyllocomos, Platycaulos, Pseudoloxocarya, RestioRestioRestio is the name of a group of plants within the Restionaceae. Many species formerly included within the Restio genus are now classified into a number of other genera including Acion, Baloskion and Eurychorda....
, Rhodocoma, Sporadanthus, Staberoha, Thamnochortus, Willdenowia, Winifredia.
External links
- Restionaceae in L. Watson and M.J. Dallwitz (1992 onwards). The families of flowering plants: descriptions, illustrations, identification, information retrieval. Version: 27 April 2006. http://delta-intkey.com.
- Restionaceae in the Flora of China
- Florabase [218 entries, in Restionaceae sensu lato]
- NCBI Taxonomy Browser