The genera of Capparaceae and Moringaceae in the southeastern United States

Abstract

Annual herbs or shrubs to trees, often with strongly scented or glutinous herbage.Leaves alternate [sometimes ± lacking], simple or palmately compound, usually petiolate; stipules absent (or inconspicuous) or thornlike.Hairs 1 to many celled, simple or branched, sometimes peltate, thornlike or glandular.Inflorescences few to many flowered, usually bracteate, terminal and racemose, or flowers solitary and axillary.Flowers ± irregular, hypogynous, with open or closed aestivation, bisexual (or polygamous) [to unisexual, the plants dioecious] ; perianth usually 4merous [sometimes tubular or ± perigynous basally, or very rarely undifferentiated].Sepals usually 4 [rarely 3-8], 1 (or ± 2)-seriate, ± free or calyx lobed [or synsepalous].Petals usually 4, free, and alternisepalous [rarely 2, ± sympetalous, or apetalous].Receptacle usually glandular and often prolonged into an androgynophore.Stamens few [4 and alternipetalous] to many [sometimes sterile] ; filaments filiform [or clavate] ; anthers ± basifixed [to versatile], introrse, 2-locular at anthesis, dehiscent longitudinally; pollen usually 3-colporate and ± prolate.Gynoecium syncarpous, 2[-8]-carpellate, usually on a gynophore; stigma ± capitate; style obsolete to long-filiform; ovary l-(2-)[or more]-locular with 2 [or more] parietal [or rarely central] placentae; ovules few [1] to many, campylotropous, 2-integumented [sometimes with an inner layer of tracheary elements].Fruits siliquiform [to siliculiform] , dehiscent by 2 valves to indehiscent [sometimes ± baccate or inflated] .Seeds usually many [or 1], folded or ± coiled, sometimes ± arillate; endosperm scanty; embryo curved [to variously convoluted].(Capparidaceae of authors.)Type genus: Capparis L.1 Prepared for a generic flora of the southeastern United States, a joint project of the Gray Herbarium and the Arnold