Monocots I

1. Monocots I Orchidaceae -- the orchid family(835/20,000-30,000; mostly tropics but also in temperate latitudes) • Habit herbs, terrestrial, often epiphytic ± succulence: stems often modified into fleshy pseudobulbs; adventitious roots • Leaves alternate or all basal (opposite, whorled); simple; leaf bases with distinctive closed sheath surrounding stem; parallel venation • Inflorescences spikes, racemes, panicles, or flowers solitary • Special floral charactersflowers highly zygomorphic, flower is turned upside down (resupinate) as it develops so the labellum is on the bottom • Calyx 3 sepals distinct or connate; often petaloid • Corolla 3 petals distinct or connate, with the third petal (lip or labellum) usually elaborated in some way • Androecium 1 or 2(3) stamens, adnate to stigma and style forming a column; anther(s) with pollinia, pollinia covered by cap-like rostellum • Gynoecium 3 carpels, connate; inferior with 1 locule with many many extremely teeny tiny parietal ovules (rarely 3 locules and many many extremely teeny tiny axile ovules); style 1, massive, adnate to androecium forming column, stigmatic surfaces variously positioned • Fruit= capsule with tiny, nonendospermous seeds • (Floral formula: Ca 3 Co 3 A 1-2 G 3 )

2. Monocots I Orchidaceae -- comments • Notable Genera: Many ornamentals such as Cattleya, Dendrobium,and Epidendrum; including temperate species such as Cypripedium and Paphiopedilum (lady-slipper orchids). Vanilla is extracted from fermented capules of Vanilla planifolia. • Comments:The androecium and parts of the gynoecium in this family have been highly modified in such a way that many, many, many, many pollen grains are delivered as a single package to the stigmatic surface; usually by a pollinator. This means that if a flower is pollinated, then all the teeny, tiny ovules that have formed in the ovary will be fertilized. You can think of this as an all-or-nothing pollination strategy. • The aerial roots in many epiphytic orchids have a special layer on the outside called velamen. This non-living layer, which is a multiple epidermis, seals in moisture and acts as protective layer for the roots.

3. Monocots I Iridaceae -- the iris family(60-88/1,500; cosmopolitan, most diverse in Africa) • Habit herbs or sometimes shrub-like • Leaves alternate or basal; simple, entire; leaf bases usually equitant; parallel venation • Inflorescences cymes, umbels, spikes, panicles, or flowers solitary; flowers often enclosed or subtended by 1 or more spathes (i.e. bracts) • Special floral characters flowers perfect and showy, regular or irregular, hypanthium usually well-developed; some genera have petaloid stigmas that are situated above a sepal in such a way that the stamen is between the stigma and sepal • Calyx 3 sepals distinct or connate; sometimes resembling the petals • Corolla 3 petals distinct or connate; if unable to distinguish from sepals, the perianth has tepals • Androecium 3 stamens distinct or filaments sometimes connate; ± adnate to hypanthium; anthers basifixed • Gynoecium 3 carpels, connate; inferior (rarely superior) with 3 locules and many axile ovules; style 1, undivided or three-lobed, free or adnate to hypanthium, stigmas sometimes petaloid • Fruit= capsule • (Floral formula: Ca 3 Co 3 A 3 G 3 )

4. Monocots I Iridaceae -- comments • Some Genera: Iris, Gladiolus, Sisyrinchium, Freesia, Crocus • Many important ornamentals in this family!! If you want to see beautiful arrangements, try visiting an iris show. Iris fanciers have bred an impressive array of colors, shapes and sizes in their favorite flowers. • Products: Saffron dye and spice from Crocus sativa (do you know which part?) and orris root from rhizomes of Iris spp. Some members of this family are also important for the perfume industry. • Comments: The basifixed anthers and inferior ovary of this family are two features that can help you distinguish them from members of the Liliaceae (which have versatile anthers and usually have a superior ovary).

5. ß-family Monocots I Araceae -- the arum family(110/1800-2450; cosmopoliton, mostly in tropics and subtropics) • Habit herbs, shrubs or vines; terrestrial or often semi-epiphytic; vining members may be ± woody; adventitious roots especially evident • Leaves alternate; simple to pinnately or palmately lobed or compound; blades with pinnate venation and usually long petiole that is sheathing to some degree; sometimes a bladeless deciduous sheathing leaf (prophyll) basally encloses each foliage leaf • Inflorescences fleshy spike, the spadix, surrounded or subtended by a conspicuous spathe • Special floral characters flowers small • Perianth 0, 4 or 6 tepals distinct or connate • Androecium 1, 2, 4 or 8 stamens distinct or connate; filaments short or anthers sessile • Gynoecium 1-many carpels, connate; superior or inferior (sunken into flesh of spadix) with 1-many locules and 1-many axile, parietal, marginal, basal or apical ovules; style 1, short or stigma sessile • Fruit= berry • (Floral formula: T 0 or 4-6 A 4-10 G 2-4 )

6. ß-family Monocots I Bromeliaceae -- the bromeliad family (45-54/1,500-2,000; tropical to subtropical, almost entirely New World) • Habitherbs (rarely shrubs or trees); usually acaulescent; often epiphytic, with some members tank-epiphytes • Leaves alternate, often in dense basal rosette; simple, basally sheathing; somewhat succulent; often with spiny margins; parallel venation; covered with distinctive peltate or shielded hygroscopic trichomes • Inflorescences spikes, racemes, or panicles • Special floral charactersflowers subtended by brightly colored petaloid bracts • Calyx 3 sepals distinct or connate; green or petaloid • Corolla 3 petals distinct or connate • Androecium 6 stamens distinct or filaments connate at base; free or ± adnate to petals • Gynoecium 3 carpels, connate; superior to inferior with 3 locules and many axile ovules; style 1, undivided • Fruit= capsule or berry, sometimes a multiple fruit (e.g. pineapple) • (Floral formula: Ca 3 Co 3 A 6 G 4 OR Ca 3 Co 3 A 6 G 3 )

7. ß-family Monocots I Bromeliaceae -- comments • Some Genera: Guzmania, Tillandsia, Ananus, Pitcairnia • Products: Ananus comosus (pineapple) is a multiple fruit that lacks seeds because it is a sterile triploid. Tillandsia usneoides (spanish-moss) is dried and used as packing material or upholstery stuffing. Various members are grown as ornamentals, and fiber for cordage is harvested from leaves of many genera.

8. Monocots I Arecaceae -- the palm family (200, 3000; Tropical and warm temperate, a few cool temperate or montane species) • Habit shrubs, woody vines and trees; usually unbranched • Leaves alternate, often forming dense terminal rosettes; simple to compound, plicate (folded like a fan) in bud; sheathing; estipulate; usually long-petiolate and very large • Inflorescences spikes, racemes, heads, cymes or large panicles; basally subtended one or more spathes • Special floral characters hypanthium sometimes present • Calyx 3 (2-4) sepals distinct or connate • Corolla 3 (2-4) petals distinct or connate; often sepaloid in appearance • Androecium 6 (3 or 7-many) stamens distinct or filaments connate; ± adnate to corolla or hypanthium • Gynoecium 3 (1-10) carpels, distinct or connate; superior with 1-3 locules and 1 basal or apical ovule/locule OR 1 locule and 1 basal or marginal ovule/carpel; styles 3, sometimes basally connate or stigmas sessile • Fruit= usually a one-seeded drupe or berry, sometimes coalescent into fleshy syncarp • (Floral formula: Ca 3 Co 3 A 6 G 3 or 3 )

9. Monocots I Arecaceae -- comments • Comments: An extremely large and diverse monocot family with many important agricultural and ornamental species including Cocos nucifera (coconut), Elaeis guineensis (oil palm), Phoenix dactylifera (date palm), Washingtonia (fan palms), and Roystonea (royal palm). Notice that palm trees look woody, but they lack the taper of dicot tree (they are the same thickness at the base as at the top). “Wood” in the palm family is produced by a primary thickening meristem (adds more primary growth near the apex), not by a vascular cambium as you would find in a dicot with secondary growth!

10. Monocots I Liliaceae -- the lily family (In the broad sense)(22/485; Mostly Northern Hemisphere, greatest diversity in Southeast Asia) • Habit herbs, shrubs, woody vines; sometimes with bulbs or rhizomes • Leaves alternate, whorled or all basal (opposite); simple usually with sheathing bases, sometimes succulaent or reduced to scales • Inflorescences various, but are borne terminally • Special floral characters hypanthium sometimes present • Calyx 3 (2-5) sepals distinct or basally adnate to petals, often petaloid • Corolla 3 (2-5 or more) petals distinct or basally adnate to sepals; mostly petaloid; if unable to distinguish from sepals, the perianth has tepals • Androecium 6 (3-12) stamens distinct or filaments ±connate; free or adnate to hypanthium; anthers versatile (centrally attached and hinged) • Gynoecium 3 (2-5) carpels, connate or only connate at base; superior (rarely inferior or half- inferior) with 3 locules and 1-many axile ovules/locule (rarely 1 locule with 1-many parietal ovules); styles 3 (4-5), or 1 and entire or ± lobed, or stigma sessile • Fruit= capsule, berry or samara • (Floral formula: Ca 3 Co 3 A 6 G 3 )