| Cucurbitaceae | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Hodgsonia male plant | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Division: | Magnoliophyta |
| Class: | Magnoliopsida |
| Order: | Cucurbitales |
| Family: | Cucurbitaceae Juss. |
Cucurbitaceae is a plant family commonly known as melons, gourds or cucurbits and includes crops like cucumbers, squashes (including pumpkins), luffas, melons and watermelons. The family is predominantly distributed around the tropics, where those with edible fruits were amongst the earliest cultivated plants in both the Old and New Worlds.
Most of the plants in this family are annual vines but there are also woody lianas, thorny shrubs, and trees (Dendrosicyos). Many species have large, yellow or white flowers. The stems are hairy and pentangular. Tendrils are present at 90° to the leaf petioles at nodes. Leaves are exstipulate alternate simple palmately lobed or palmately compound. The flowers are unisexual, with male and female flowers on different plants (dioecious) or on the same plant (monoecious). The female flowers have inferior ovaries. The fruit is often a kind of berry called a pepo.
There are about 125 extant genera in Cucurbitaceae, including 960 species. The following is the classification as given by Charles Jeffrey as of 1990.
Subfamily Zanonioideae (small striate pollen grains)
Subfamily Cucurbitoideae (styles united into a single column)
Alphabetical list of genera: Abobra Acanthosicyos Actinostemma Alsomitra Ampelosycios Anacaona Apatzingania Apodanthera Bambekea Benincasa Biswarea Bolbostemma Brandegea Bryonia Calycophysum Cayaponia Cephalopentandra Ceratosanthes Chalema Cionosicyos Citrullus Coccinia Cogniauxia Corallocarpus Cremastopus Ctenolepis Cucumella Cucumeropsis Cucumis Cucurbita Cucurbitella Cyclanthera Dactyliandra Dendrosicyos Dicaelospermum Dieterlea Diplocyclos Doyerea Ecballium Echinocystis Echinopepon Edgaria Elateriopsis Eureiandra Fevillea Gerrardanthus Gomphogyne Gurania Guraniopsis Gymnopetalum Gynostemma Halosicyos Hanburia Helmontia Hemsleya Herpetospermum Hodgsonia Ibervillea Indofevillea Kedrostis Lagenaria Lemurosicyos Luffa Marah Melancium Melothria Melothrianthus Microsechium Momordica Muellerargia Mukia Myrmecosicyos Neoalsomitra Nothoalsomitra Odosicyos Oreosyce Parasicyos Penelopeia Peponium Peponopsis Polyclathra Posadaea Praecitrullus Pseudocyclanthera Pseudosicydium Psiguria Pteropepon Pterosicyos Raphidiocystis Ruthalicia Rytidostylis Schizocarpum Schizopepon Sechiopsis Sechium Selysia Seyrigia Sicana Sicydium Sicyos Sicyosperma Siolmatra Siraitia Solena Tecunumania Telfairia Thladiantha Trichosanthes Tricyclandra Trochomeria Trochomeriopsis Tumacoca Vaseyanthus Wilbrandia Xerosicyos Zanonia Zehneria Zombitsia Zygosicyos Ref: Watson and Dallwitz 3 September 2002
CUCURBITACEAE, a botanical order of dicotyledons, containing 87 genera and about 650 species, found in the temperate .and warmer parts of the earth but especially developed in the FIG. I. - Bryonia dioica, Bryony, about a nat. size. 1, Part of corolla of male flower with attached stamens; 2, female flower after xemoval of calyx and corolla; 3, berries; I, 2, 3 about nat. size.
tropics. The plants are generally annual herbs, climbing by means of tendrils and having a rapid growth. The long-stalked leaves are arranged alternately, and are generally palmately lobed and veined. The flowers or inflorescences are borne in the leaf-axils, in which a vegetative bud is also found, and at the side of the leaf-stalk is a simple or branched tendril. There has been much difference of opinion as to what member or members the tendril represents; the one which seems most in accordance with facts regards the tendril as a shoot, the lower portion representing the stem, the upper twining portion a leaf. The flowers are unisexual, and strikingly epigynous, the perianth and stamens being attached to a bell-shaped prolongation of the receptacle above the ovary. The five narrow pointed sepals are followed by five petals which are generally united to form a more or less bell-shaped corolla. There are five stamens in the male flowers; the anthers open towards the outside, are FIG. 2.
of cucumber 4, Female flower.
5, Horizontal plan of male flower.
6, Transverse section of fruit, about 3 nat. size.
1 and 4 nat. size.
one-celled, with the pollen-sacs generally curved and variously united. The carpels, normally three in number, form an ovary with three thick, fleshy, bifid placentas bearing a large number of ovules on each side, and generally filling the interior of the ovary with a juicy mass. The short thick style has generally three branches each bearing a fleshy, usually forked stigma. The fruit is a fleshy many-seeded berry with a tough rind (known as a pepo), and often attains considerable size. The embryo completely fills the seed.
The order is represented in Britain by bryony (Bryonia dioica), (fig. 1) a hedge-climber, perennial by means of large fleshy tubers which send up each year a number of slender angular stems. The leaves are heart-shaped with wavy margined lobes. The flowers are greenish, a to - in. in diameter; the fruit, a red several-seeded berry, is about 4 in. in diameter.
Many genera are of economic importance; Cucumis (fig. 2) affords cucumber and melon; Cucurbita, pumpkin and marrow; Citrullus vulgaris is water-melon, and C. Colocynthis, colocynth; Ecballium Elaterium (squirting cucumber) is medicinal; Sechium edule (chocho), a tropical American species, is largely cultivated for its edible fruit; it contains one large seed which germinates in situ. Lagenaria is the gourd. The fruits of Luf'a aegyptiaca have a number of closely netted vascular bundles in the pericarp, forming a kind of loose felt which supplies the well-known loofah or bath-sponge.
|
<< Cucumber |
Cuddalore >> |
Cucurbitaceae
Classification System: APG II (down to family level)
Main Page
Cladus: Eukaryota
Regnum: Plantae
Cladus: Angiospermae
Cladus: Eudicots
Cladus: core
eudicots
Cladus: Rosids
Cladus: Eurosids
I
Ordo: Cucurbitales
Familia: Cucurbitaceae
Subfamiliae: Cucurbitoideae - Zanonioideae
Genera: Abobra - Acanthosicyos -
Actinostemma - Alsomitra -
Ampelosicyos - Anacaona -
Apatzingania - Apodanthera -
Bambekea - Benincasa -
Biswarea - Bolbostemma -
Brandegea - Bryonia -
Calycophysum - Cayaponia -
Cephalopentandra - Ceratosanthes -
Chalema - Cionosicyos - Citrullus -
Coccinia - Cogniauxia -
Corallocarpus - Cremastopus -
Ctenolepis - Cucumella -
Cucumeropsis - Cucumis - Cucurbita -
Cucurbitella - Cyclanthera -
Cyclantheropsis - Dactyliandra -
Dendrosicyos - Dicoelospermum -
Dieterlea - Diplocyclos -
Doyerea - Ecballium - Echinocystis -
Echinopepon - Edgaria -
Elateriopsis - Eureiandra -
Fevillea - Gerrardanthus -
Gomphogyne - Gurania -
Guraniopsis - Gymnopetalum -
Gynostemma - Halosicyos - Hanburia -
Helmontia - Hemsleya -
Herpetospermum - Hodgsonia -
Ibervillea - Indofevillea -
Kedrostis - Lagenaria -
Lemurosicyos - Luffa - Marah -
Melancium - Melothria -
Melothrianthus - Microsechium -
Momordica - Muellerargia - Mukia -
Myrmecosicyos - Neoalsomitra -
Nothoalsomitra - Odosicyos -
Oreosyce - Parasicyos -
Penelopeia - Peponium -
Peponopsis - Polyclathra -
Posadaea - Praecitrullus -
Pseudocyclanthera - Pseudosicydium -
Psiguria - Pteropepon -
Pterosicyos - Raphidiocystis -
Ruthalicia - Rytidostylis -
Schizocarpum - Schizopepon -
Sechiopsis - Sechium - Selysia -
Seyrigia - Sicana - Sicydium -
Sicyos - Sicyosperma -
Siolmatra - Siraitia - Solena -
Tecunumania - Telfairia -
Thladiantha - Trichosanthes -
Tricyclandra - Trochomeria -
Trochomeriopsis - Tumamoca -
Vaseyanthus - Wilbrandia -
Xerosicyos - Zanonia -
Zehneria - Zombitsia -
Zygosicyos
Cucurbitaceae Juss.
| Cucurbitaceae | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| File:Hodgsonia heteroclita | |||||||||||
| Hodgsonia male plant | |||||||||||
| Scientific classification | |||||||||||
| |||||||||||
Cucurbitaceae is a plant family commonly known as melons, gourds or cucurbits and includes crops like cucumbers, squashes (including pumpkins), luffas, melons and watermelons. The family is predominantly distributed around the tropics, where those with edible fruits were amongst the earliest cultivated plants in both the Old and New Worlds.
   | Cucurbitaceae - Angiosperm Families - Cucurbitaceae Juss. |
| | J.H. Kirkbride Jr and M.J. Dallwitz (2000 onwards). Cucumis and Cucumella (Cucurbitaceae): cucumbers and melons. - Cucumis and Cucumella (Cucurbitaceae): Cucumbers and Melons Interactive Identification and Specimen Location |
|
|
Top topics
Wikis
Quiz
Search
