Plant Families Acanthaceae to Araceae

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Plant FamiliesAcanthaceae to Araceae
INTERIOR PLANTS
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ACANTHACEAE

• Tender Perennials
• Simple, opposite leaves
• Irregular, bilabate flowers on spikes or in
  clusters obvious bracts
• Royal Plant Family for tropicals
• 240 genera 2200 sp

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Acanthaceae
Pachystachy is an example of the spike flowers
with obvious bracts, opposite leaves, and
bilabate flowers.
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AIZOACEAE

• Carpet-Weed Family or Mesembryanthus Family
• Leaves alt or opp, succulent and rock-like or
  scales
• Desert and seashore environs
• Leaves reduced and fleshy
• Daisy-like, stemless flower
• 100 genera, 600 species

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AIZOACEAE

• Aptenia illustrates the daisy-like flower, fleshy
  leaves

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AMARANTHACEAE

• Distributed widely in warm countries
• Brightly colored foliage
• Opposite or Alternate leaves
• Flowers are not usually important
• Easy culture, tend to be weedy

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AMARANTHACEAE

• Iresine demonstrates the highly colored foliage
  and opposite leaf attachment as well as lack of
  attractive flowers.

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AMARYLLIDACEAE

• Perennial herbs that have umbellate, paniculate
  or single flowers
• Fiberous root system or specialized such as
  corms, bulbs,rhizomes, etc
• Inferior ovary rather than the superior ovary in
  Liliaceae
• Six-merous, 90 genera, 1300 species

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AMARALLIDACEAE

• Clivia illustrates the characteristics of a
  specialized root system and an umble flower

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ARACEAE

• Aroid or Calla family economically important
• Path and spadix flowers
• Calcium oxalate crystals are poisonous
• Flowers may be inconspicuous or very attractive

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ARACEAE

• Spathyphyllum presents a creamy white flower
  which is an attractive version of the spathe and
  spadix flower. Low light levels and attractive
  foliage complete the look.

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Plant FamiliesAraliaceae to Asclepiadaceae
INTERIOR PLANTS
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ARALIACEAE

• Herbs, shrubs, trees and vines, some with thorns
• Insignificant flowers
• Palmately lobed foliage
• Grown for medicinal and ornamental uses

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ARALIACEAE

• This schefflera demonstrates palmately lobed
  foliage

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ARAUCARIACEAE

• Evergreen trees with awl-like foliage, resinous
• Whorled branches with leathery leaves
• Deciduous cone
• Grown outdoors in Southern US

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ARAUCARIACEAE

• This Norfolk Island Pine is very representative
  of this family.

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ASCLEPIADACEAE

• Waxy flowers frequently on a vine
• Milky juice
• Opposite leaves, simple and entire
• Milky sap may be toxic

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ASCLEPIADACEAE

• Hoya demonstrates both the waxy flowers and stiff
  foliage of this family.

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Plant FamiliesBegoniaceae to Bromeliaceae
INTERIOR PLANTS
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BEGONIACEAE

• Palmately lobed leaves
• Alternate with a lopsided shape
• Swollen nodes with red color
• Succulent
• Attractive flowers
• Fiberous, rhizomatous, or tuberous

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BEGONIACEAE

• This Angel Wing Begonia illustrates the succulent
  nature and swollen nodes of the family.

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BIGNONIACEAE

• Opposite leaves which may be compound
• Showy flowers
• Small family including trees and shrubs

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BIGNONIACEAE

• This China Doll illustrates the compound leaves

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BROMELIACEAE

• Epiphytic
• Stiff or succulent leaves in rosettes, often
  spiney
• May hold water in a cup-like structure
• Showy bracts may persist

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BROMELIACEAE

• The bracts on this Silver Vase provide color for
  several months after the small flowers are gone.

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Plant FamiliesCactaceae to Cyperaceae
INTERIOR PLANTS
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CACTACEAE

• Showy flowers
• Spines, areoles, glochids, and fleshy stems to
  conserve water
• Many native to demanding environments in the
  Americas
• 120 genera and 3 subfamilies

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CACTACEAE

• Christmas Cactus illustrates the reduced leaves
  and stems.

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COMMELINACEAE

• Alternate, clasping leaves with purple and olive
  colors
• Mucilaginous sap and flowers that may or may not
  be attractive
• 3-merous with knotty stems

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COMMELINACEAE

• Wandering Jew is an excellent example of the
  highly colored leaves of the family.

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COMPOSITAE (ASTERACEAE)

• Classic ray and disk flowers forming a thistle
  head
• Highly variable foliage
• Milky sap may be present
• Largest plant family with over 950 genera and
  20,000 species

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COMPOSITAE (ASTERACEAE)

• The purple pubescence on the Purple Passion Plant
  illustrates the variability of foliage.

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CRASSULACEAE

• Succulent, fleshy leaves with a waxy bloom
• Insignificant flowers
• Simple, entire leaves
• Constant full sun for best growth

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CRASSULACEAE

• Panda Paws is an example of the succulent foliage
  of this family.

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CYCADACEAE

• Palm-like, pinnate leaves that are stiff and in
  rosettes
• Primative
• Heat tolerant
• Slow growing
• Ancient, dinosaur vintage

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CYCADACEAE

• The cone-like fruiting structure demon-strates
  how primative cycads are.

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CYPERACEAE

• Sedge-like plant with solid 3-angled culms
• Parallel veins
• Wet areas
• Flowers are inconspicuous and in terminal umbels

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Plant FamiliesEuphorbiaceae to Gesneriaceae
INTERIOR PLANTS
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EUPHORBIACEAE

• Herbs, shrubs, and fleshy cactus-like succulents
• Flowers are inconspicuous and may have colorful
  bracts
• Milky juice
• Medicinal and ornamental uses

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EUPHORBIACEAE

• The bright color foliage of the Croton is very
  indicative of this family.

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GENTIANACEAE

• Temperate plants with variable leaves
• Flowers frequently blue and showy in terminal or
  axilary clusters
• 70 genera and 800 species
• Fruit is a capsule

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GENTIANACEAE

• The Persian Violet is an excellent example of the
  blue flowers and attractive foliage of this
  family.

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GESNERIACEAE

• Terrestrial and epiphytic plants
• Leaves simple and often covered with soft velvety
  hair
• Flowers are 5-merous and tubular to bell-shaped
• Stems are watery
• Rhizomatous, tuberous or prostrate

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GESNERIACEAE

• African Violets display the velvety hair and
  watery stems of this family.