| Class: | angiosperms |
| Order: | Lamiales |
| Family: | Lamiaceae |
| Editor | A. Weitkunat & S. Rilke, 2014 |
| Name acc. to: | APGII |
| Herbar: | list records    |
| Synonym: | Labiatae (acc. to Grubov 1982) |
| Description: | Herbs or semishrubs. Stems mostly quadrangular. Leaves opposite-decussate. Inflorescence: verticils in axils of leaves or terminal cymes. Flowers markedely zygomorphic, bilabiate with upper and lower lip (except Amethystea, Mentha and Elsholtzia). Fruit 4 lobed, breaks up into 4 equal dry nutlets (a cluster of 4 1-seeded nutlets = schizocarp), often surrounded by staying calyx. |
| Confuse with: | Verbenaceae, Scrophulariaceae |
| Comments: | Economic use: aromatic oil. |
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| genus: 23 |
| species: 86 |
| Habit (i)general appearance of a plant | |
| Parasite status: (i)Is the plant a half- or full parasite? | no parasite/saprophyte (i)Plant fully autonomous, leaves with chlorophyll
example: Most plants, Ranunculus
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| Water or terrestrial plant: (i)Where do the plants grow? | terrestrial (i)Plant grows on dry land
example: Orostachys spinosa
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| Leaf (i)expanded, usually photosynthetic organ of a plant (including phylloclades) | |
| Leaf development: (i)Structure and development of leaves. | flattened blade (i)Cross-section of lamina flat, plain
common leaf (i)Green, often divided in blade and petiole
example: Cotoneaster
with green leaves (i)Plant with green leaves
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| Leaf arrangement: (i)Arrangement of leaves at the stem. | opposite, opposite-decussate (i)Two leaves per node
example: Lamiaceae, e.g. Phlomis  
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| Stipule: (i)Leaflets at the base of the petiole, these are smaller and of different shape. | none (i)Without stipules
example: Euphorbia, Ericaceae s.l.
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| Leaf veination: (i)Arrangement of the main veins of a leaf. | pinnate (i)One main vein, several side veins, sometimes inconspicuous
example: Cicerbita   
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| Flower (i)reproductive portion of the plant, consisting of sepals, petals, stamens, and pistils | |
| Flower appearance and pollination: (i)General appearance of the flower. | attractive, animal-pollinated (i)attractive and coloured flowers, mostly large, attracting surely animals
example: Trollius, Rosa, Chamaerhodos
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| Perianth arrangement: (i)Attention: in some plants, flowers may be dimorphic in different ways (dioecious or gynodioecious). If flowers vary, record the characters of the most showy flowers. | double, different (i)Two types of perianth leaves, differently coloured (sepals: outer periant leaves, usually greenish, and petals: inner perianth leaves, usually coloured)
example: Parnassia  
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| Flower symmetry: (i)Symmetry of the perianth leaves. Attention: to assess this character, look on sepals, petals and stamens, but neglect carpels and ovary. | zygomorphic (i)One axis of symmetry, monosymmetrical flowers
example: Pedicularis, Nepeta, Viola   
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| Flower form: (i)common forms of flowers ? Veronica | bilabiate (i)Petals froming two lips, flower usually zygomorphic
example: Lamiaceae, Scrophulariaceae p.p. 
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| Sepal number: (i)Number of sepal leaves (outer perianth leaves, calyx leaves, mostly greenish). Attention, this character applies only for flowers separated in sepals and petals, thus excluding most monocots. Be aware of the bracts (involucral leaves) of Asteraceae flowerheads, do not qualify these as sepals! Be also aware in Rosaceae is often an epicalyx developed, in this case count all parts. | 5 (i)
example: Polemonium
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| Sepal fusion: (i)To which degree are the sepal leaves connected? Attention, this character applies only for flowers separated in sepals and petals, thus excluding most monocots. Be aware of the bracts (involucral leaves) of Asteraceae flowerheads, do not qualify these as sepals! | fused (i)Leaves united, only tips are free
example: Fabaceae, Silene  
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| Petal / Tepal number: (i)Number of petal leaves (inner perianth leaves, usually coloured). | 5 (i)
example: Potentilla
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| Petal / Tepal fusion: (i)To which degree are the petal leaves connected? Petals sympetalous. | fused (i)petal leaves united, only tips are free (gamopetalous, sympetalous)
example: Linnaea, Adenophora, Stellera
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| Spur: (i)A hollow, slender, sac-like appendage of the perianth leaves, storing nectar. | no spur (i)Flower without appendage
example: Peganum
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| Stamen fusion: (i)To which degree are the stamens fused? Attention: Whereas the pollen sacs itself are often free., their stalks (filaments) may be fused. Here, we count them as fused if they are together over at least one thirth of their length. | free (i)Stamens with separate bases
example: Malus
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| Pistil number: (i)Number of pistils (female floral organs: style, if developed; stigma and carpels/ovary together build the pistil). | 1 (i)One carpel, but clearly one stigma
example: Pyrola, Primula, Alyssum
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| Carpel number: (i)Number of carpels (carpel: forming a simple pistil or part of a compound pistil, modified leaf). | 2
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| Carpel fusion: (i)To which degree are the carpels (modified leaf forming simple pistil or part of a compound pistil) fused. | fused (i)Carpels united into an ovary, only styles are free
example: Malus, Berberis
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| Stigma number per style: (i)Number of stigmas per style. | 2 (i)Two stigmas, resulting from two fused carpels with or without developed style 
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| Ovary position: (i)For entirely or partly fused carpels, describe their position in relation to the insertion point of perianth leaves (best done by doing a longitudinal section of a flower). | superior (hypogynous) (i)Base of carpels attached above insertion point of perianth leaves, carpels free or fused
example: Delphinium, Anemone  
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| Sex: (i)Distribution of male and female organs among flowers, only most commonly cases. | bisexual, hermaphrodite (i)All or nearly all flowers of a plant with male and female parts
example: Haplophyllum, Chenopodium
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| Fruit (i)the seed bearing organ, with or without adnate parts; a ripened ovary and any other structures which are attached and ripen with it. Aggregate fruits are handled like simple fruits for determination. | |
| Consistency: (i)Fleshy fruits or dry fruits, see dispersal adaptations for further classification. | dry (i)With a dry outer shell, no fleshy parts, but seed (embryo) could be edible
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| Type of fruit: (i)Common fruit types (including pseudocarp). | Indehiscent fruits
Solitary fruits (i)   
nut or nutlet (i)Dry fruit with a single, hard stone inside (and usually a large often edible embryo) 
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| Opening of fruit: (i)Mode of dehiscence at maturity to release seeds. | not opening / indehiscent (i)Fruits remain closed at maturity and disperse with seeds inside
example: Corylus (nut), Vaccinium (berry)
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| Splitting of fruit: (i)Is a solitary fruit splitting into fruitlets? The fruit splits into separate one-seeded segments at maturity (schizocarp). | splitting
in 4 parts (i)
example: Boraginaceae, Lamiaceae 
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| Shoot/Stem (i)a young stem or branch | |
| Cross section: (i)Shape of the cross section of a stem or shoot (look at first to second year shoots). | square / quadrate (i)Stem or shoot with 4 angles
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| Root / shoot below ground (i)plant part below ground (in most cases), including below ground shoots, without leaves | |
| Root type: (i)Organisation of the roots. | allorhizous (i)Plant with a conspicuous tap root, one larger tap root with side roots
example: Dicotyledonae  inherited by order Lamiales: allorhizous
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| Plant Use | |
| General Use: | other
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