46 - Phytolaccaceae
from Division 5 - Magnoliophyta
Summary
Perennial herbs, more or less woody at the base. Leaves alternate, simple, entire, petiolate, without stipules. Inflorescence a numerous-flowered, leaf-opposed raceme; flowers bisexual, hypogynous and actinomorphic. Perianth of one whorl of 5 free segments, usually petaloid. Carpels 6–10 in one whorl, more or less free to fused, each with one ovule. Stamens 7–16. Style 1, short. Fruits succulent, berry-like, 6–10-lobed from close adherence or fusion of the carpels.
Contains about 20 genera and over 125 species. Tropical and subtropical regions, especially of the New World. There has been much confusion about the identity of plants occurring in Great Britain, which have usually been called P. acinosa Roxb., so in most cases only occurrences in and around Cambridge are mentioned below.
- Type
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- Information
- Flora of Great Britain and Ireland , pp. 365Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2018