| Classification |
| Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Magnoliophyta
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order Type: Eudicots-Caryophyllids
Order: Caryophyllales
Family: Portulacaceae
Family Common Name: Purslane Family
Genera: Portulaca, Talinum |
Defining Features: The species
Claytonia virginica (Spring Beauty) exhibits the phenomenon
of chromosomal drift, having a range of chromosome numbers from 12 to +/-
200. Some species have Crassulacean Acid Metabolism (CAM).
Defining Morphology: Floral
Features: Flowers are actinomorphic and bisexual. Inflorescences are as
solitary flowers or determinate as cymes or racemes. Ovaries are superior
to inferior with free-central or basal placentation. Fruit and Seed Features:
Dicotyledon. Fruit as a capsule. Seeds smooth and shiny with a large, coiled
embryo. Endosperm is lacking and replaced by perisperm. Vegetative Features:
Habit is annual or perennial, somewhat succulent herbs (rarely shrubs).
Leaves simple and alternate (except Claytonia). Stipules are thin and dry
or lacking.
Distribution: Cosmopolitan,
especially western U.S..
Economic Use: A food source
for North American Plains Indians (the young leaves of p. oleracea). As
cultivated common bedding and rock garden plants.
Number of Genera Globally:
19
Number of Species Globally: 450
