World Wide Flowering Plant Family Identification
URL: http://www.colby.edu/info.tech/BI211/
LIST OF CHARACTERS
Plant Habit
1. Woody plants (excl. suffrutices)
2. Herbaceous plants (incl. suffrutices)
3. Aquatic plants, leaves floating or submerged
4. Climbers, lianas
5. Chlorophyll absent (parasites or saprophytes)
6. Bulb present (monocots only)
7. Milky juice present
8. Spiny stems or leaves
9. Tendrils present
10. Cladodes or phyllodes (modified branches or petioles)
Vestiture
11. Hairs glandular
12. Hairs stellate (also 2-armed, branched and tufted)
13. Hairs stellate (not 2-armed, branched and tufted)
14. Hairs 2-armed or t-shaped, non-glandular
15. Hairs branched
16. Hairs tufted, non-glandular
17. Hairs peltate or scale-like
18. Hairs vesicular or bladder-like
19. Hairs stinging
20. Cystoliths present (dicots only)
Leaves
21. Leaves opposite or verticillate
22. Leaves alternate (excl. distichous monocots)
23. Leaves distichous (monocots only)
24. Leaves equitant (e.g. Iris)
25. Leaves peltate
26. Leaves not compound
27. Leaves compound
28. Leaves pinnately compound (4 or more leaflets)
29. Leaves ternately compound (3 leaflets)
30. Leaves palmately compound (4 or more leaflets)
31. Venation pinnate or hardly visible in leaves or leaflets (incl. no. 30)
32. Venation invisible or leaves 1-nerved (monocots only)
33. Venation longitudinal in leaves or leaflets (incl. 3-nerved leaves)
34. Venation palmate in leaves or leaflets
35. Leaves or leaflets with entire margin (without any lobes or teeth)
36. Leaves or leaflets lobed or divided
37. Leaves or leaflets dentate, serrate, crenate, etc.
38. Epidermis of leaf papillose (dicots only)
39. Leaves with pellucid or glandular dots or lines
40. Leaves with a ligule
41. Stipules absent
42. Stipules present (only the scars may be left)
Inflorescences
43. Flowers solitary
44. Inflorescence a raceme, simple and monopodial
45. Inflorescence a spike, simple and monopodial
46. Inflorescence a corymb, simple and monopodial
47. Inflorescence an umbel, simple and monopodial
48. Inflorescence a fascicle, simple and monopodial
49. Inflorescence a head, simple and monopodial
50. Inflorescence simple and sympodial (cyme, dichasium etc.)
51. Inflorescence compound, sympodial or monopodial (panicle, thyrsus etc.)
Flowers
52. Flowers bisexual
53. Flowers unisexual
54. Flowers actinomorphic
55. Flowers zygomorphic or irregular
56. Receptacle small (ovary superior)
57. Receptacle enlarged, united with the ovary, totally or partially covering it
58. Receptacle enlarged, totally or partially free from the ovary (super. to inf.)
59. Receptacle enlarged, conical or hemispherical (ovaries superior)
60. Disc present (annular or separate glands)
61. Disc absent
62. Perianth segments 0
63. Perianth segments 1
64. Perianth segments 2
65. Perianth segments 3
66. Perianth segments 4
67. Perianth segments 5
68. Perianth segments 6
69. Perianth segments more than 6
70. Perianth of similar segments
71. Perianth of calyx and corolla
72. Sepals 0 (incl. a cupular calyx without lobes)
73. Sepals 1
74. Sepals 2
75. Sepals 3
76. Sepals 4
77. Sepals 5
78. Sepals more than 5
79. Sepals all free from one another
80. Sepals connate (at least two of them)
81. Sepals imbricate or contorted
82. Sepals valvate
83. Petals 0 (incl. a cupular corolla without lobes)
84. Petals 1
85. Petals 2
86. Petals 3
87. Petals 4
88. Petals 5
89. Petals 6
90. Petals 7
91. Petals 8
92. Petals 9
93. Petals 10
94. Petals more than 10
95. Petals all free from one another
96. Petals connate (at least two of them)
97. Petals imbricate
98. Petals contorted
99. Petals valvate
100. Corona present, or scales in the throat
101. Anther 1, fertile
102. Anthers 2, fertile
103. Anthers 3, fertile
104. Anthers 4, fertile
105. Anthers 5, fertile
106. Anthers 6, fertile
107. Anthers 7, fertile
108. Anthers 8, fertile
109. Anthers 9, fertile
110. Anthers 10, fertile
111. Anthers more than 10, fertile
112. Stamens the same number as and opposite the petals or alternate with the sepals
113. Flowers obdiplostemonous
114. Anthers dorsifixed or ventrifixed
115. Anthers basifixed
116. Anthers introrse
117. Anthers extrorse
118. Anthers opening by longitudinal slits
119. Anthers opening by apical pores
120. Anthers opening by valves
121. Anthers 1-locular at anthesis
122. Stamens free from the corolla
123. Stamens inserted on the corolla
124. Filaments not connate
125. Filaments connate into 1 tube or bundle
126. Filaments connate into separate bundles
127. Anthers with a conspicuous appendage
128. Pollen coherent into pollinia or wax-like masses
129. Staminodia present (in male or perfect flowers only)
130. Gynophore
131. Styles absent, stigmas sessile
132. Styles more than 1, free (carpels connate)
133. Style 1, or styles more or less connate (carpels free or connate)
134. Style gynobasic
135. Carpel 1
136. Carpels 2 (free or united)
137. Carpels 3 (free or united)
138. Carpels 4 (free or united)
139. Carpels 5 (free or united)
140. Carpels more than 5 (free or united)
141. Ovary 1-locular (incl. apocarpae)
142. Ovary 2-locular
143. Ovary 3-locular
144. Ovary 4-locular
145. Ovary 5-locular
146. Ovary with more than 5 locules
147. Ovule 1 in each loculus
148. Ovules 2 in each loculus
149. Ovules more than 2 in each loculus
150. Carpels free from each other or carpel 1
151. Ovules parietal, carpels connate
152. Ovules axile, carpels connate
153. Ovules attached to central axis or ventrally if carpels free or if carpel 1
154. Ovules attached to the apex of the ovary
155. Ovules attached to the base of the ovary
Fruit
156. Fruit a capsule (incl. pod, follicle etc.)
157. Fruit a nut (incl. achene, loment, schizocarp etc.)
158. Fruit fleshy (berry, drupe, pome)
159. Fruit with 1 seed
160. Fruit with 2 seeds
161. Fruit with more than 2 seeds
162. Fruits with wings
163. Fruits with hairs for dispersal by wind
164. Fruits with retrorsely barbed, hook-like or glochidiate hairs
165. Fruits with spines and hooks
166. Seeds with wings
167. Seeds with hairs
168. Arillus or aril-like organs present
169. Embryo straight
170. Embryo curved
171. Cotyledons folded or crumpled
172. Seeds without endosperm
173. Seeds with endosperm
174. Endosperm ruminate
Distribution
175. African
176. Asian
177. Australian and Oceanian
178. European
179. North American
180. South American