Apiaceae

Family: Apiaceae

Conserved name: Umbelliferae

Popular name: the Carrot Family

Taxonomic Position (According to Cronquist)

Kingdom              : Plantae

Division                : Magnoliophyta

Class                     : Magnoliopsida

Subclass                : Rosidae

Order                    :Apiales

Family                  : Apiaceae

Identifying Characters of the family 

• Herbaceous habit
• Presence of decompound leaf
• Aromatic herbs with hollow stems
• Leaves compound with sheathing base
• Inflorescence simple or compound umbell
• Fruit schizocarp or mericarp

Origin and Distribution

This is the biggest family of angiosperm, containing one-tenth of the total number of flowering plants. The family comprises over 800 genera and about 14,000 species.

Botanical Description of Apiaceae Family

Habit: Plants are mostly annual and perennial herb

Root system: Branched tap root, tuberous roots also found

Stem: Aerial, erect, prostrate runner, hollow, with swollen nodes, sometimes rigid, internode long.

Leaf: Leaf reniform or palmately lobed.

Floral characters:

Inflorescence– A simple umbel or compound umbel

Flower-Umbel is usually zygomorphic. Flowers pentamerous and epigynous

Calyx-Sepal 5, polysepalous, aestivation valvate or imbricate

Corolla– petal five, polypetalous, two small petals and are bifid which are posterior in position

Androecium– Stamens five, free, anthers dithecous, introse, dehisce longitudinally, basifixed or dorsifexed.

Gynoecium-Bicarpellary, syncarpous, inferior.

Fruit-Scizocarpic

Floral formula:                   K ₍₅₎ C₅ A₅ G₍₂₎

Floral diagram

  Table 1: Important plants with economic importance