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Phlox family
Polemoniaceae Juss.
ハナシノブ科
A family of about 400 species distributed mainly in western North America. In Japan, Polemonium grows natively in Hokkaido and alpine zones of Honshu, and is known as a rare species. The family includes ornamentally valued plants such as Phlox and Jacob's ladder.
Key Characteristics
- ●Corolla is sympetalous, tubular to funnelform, 5-lobed
- ●Five stamens are attached to the corolla tube
- ●Leaves are pinnately compound or simple, alternate
- ●Fruit is a 3-locular capsule
Morphological Traits
A family may include species with different trait values — multiple values indicate the range within the family.
Leaf arrangement
Alternate / Opposite / Whorled
Leaf type
Simple / Compound
Venation
Pinnate
Leaf margin
Serrate / Dentate / Entire
Growth form
Shrub / Tree / Herb
Evergreen/Deciduous
Deciduous
Compound type
Pinnate / Palmate
Leaf dissection
Dissected / Undivided
Stipules
Absent
Flower symmetry
Actinomorphic
Petal count
Many
Petal fusion
Fused
Ovary position
Superior
Stamen count
5
Plant sex
Hermaphrodite
Phylogenetic Position
Angiosperms > Eudicots > Core Eudicots > Ericales > Polemoniaceae
Divergence Era
Paleogene (ca. 40 million years ago)
Representative Genera
Related Evolution Events
- ・Adaptation to specific pollinators (butterflies, bees, hummingbirds) through tubular sympetalous corolla
- ・Explosive diversification in arid western North America
Plants in Phlox family on this site
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