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Pepper family
Piperaceae
コショウ科
A family of about 3,600 species centered in the tropics. Black pepper is one of the most widely used spices in the world. Piper kadsura is native to southern Kyushu and the Ryukyu Islands in Japan.
Key Characteristics
- ●Swollen stem nodes, often climbing
- ●Flowers very small, lacking petals and sepals, borne in spicate inflorescences
- ●Leaves simple, entire, and aromatic
Morphological Traits
A family may include species with different trait values — multiple values indicate the range within the family.
Leaf arrangement
Alternate
Leaf type
Simple
Venation
Pinnate / Palmate
Leaf margin
Entire
Growth form
Shrub / Tree / Vine
Evergreen/Deciduous
Deciduous
Leaf dissection
Undivided
Stipules
Present
Aromatic
Aromatic
Ovary position
Superior
Plant sex
Hermaphrodite
Phylogenetic Position
Angiosperms > Magnoliids > Piperales > Piperaceae
Divergence Era
Late Cretaceous (ca. 90 Ma onwards)
Representative Genera
Related Evolution Events
- ・Adaptation to understory and climbing habits in tropical forests
- ・Diversification of defensive alkaloids such as piperine
Plants in Pepper family on this site
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