Caryophyllaceae Family [pink family]

Caryophyllaceae Family [ pink family]

In this family include 80 genera and 2000 species.

Description: is a large family of mainly temperate herbaceous family about 80 genera and 2000 species. It include the popular carnation plants Dianthus caryophyllus and some well known wild plants such as Silene conidea, Stellaria media.

Distribution: the family is found in all temperate parts of the world and on mountains in tropical region. Several species of Stellaria and Cerastium have become almost cosmopolitan weeds. The centre of diversity and distribution is however Mediterranean region and adjoining parts of Europe and Asia.

Representation in the temperate and southern hemisphere is small in terms of genera and species. All the larger genera Silene danthus, Arenaria etc are found in northern hemisphere with the strong concentration in mediteranian region. Similar to Balochistan climate is mainly mediteranian region therefore many species of carophyllus is found.

Diagnostic feature: in spite of large size the caryophyllaceae is a relatively uniform and easily recognized family. The plants are usually herbaceous either annually and perennial or suffruticose shrub.

Leaves: the leaves are opposite are decussate simple leaves mostly linear to lanceolate. The leaves themselves are always simple and entire, no lobes in margin, stipule are absent. When present in the subfamily Paronychioides they are usually silicarous.

Inflorencence: the cymose construction although varies in detail. The most complex is dichasial panicles in which each of the two branches of the terminal flower have an inflorescences branches itself bearing  at terminal flower and two bracteoles which repeats the structure.

In the ultimate branches the dichasia pass into scorpiod suppression of individual flower can lead to raceme like monochasial and ultimately to a single flower and inflorescences.

Flower:

are regular, usually bisexual infrequently unisexual

Calyx:   

The calyx consist of four or typically five free sepals are of united sepals with a four or five lobed apices. The bracts are present at the of base of the calyx in some genera.

Corolla:

Consist four to five petals which are free from each other petals are absent in family of Paronychioides and some other species. The apices of the petals are notch and producing more or less bilobed or even fringed petals.

Stamens:

are typically as many as petals but may be reduced to as many as five or even four in Stellaria media.

Ovary:

The ovary is superior 2 to 5 united Carpals, three united carpel then tricarpellary ovary usually  it has single locule with free central placentation but in a few species a Sailene and Lychns it is septate at the base.

The style are free and as many as there are carpels. The ovules are usually numerous but may b reduce to one. Then the placentation is based.

Fruit:

The fruit is most frequently a capsule dehiscencing by means of teeth at the apices. These may be as many or twice as many as the number of carpels. More rarely single ovule genera. The fruit is then the achene. Capsule formed from compound ovary. Achene formed from one single ovule.

Seed:

Seed are usually numerous with the embryo curved around the food reserved materials which is usually perisperm   [is the tissue derived from diploid nucleus] rather than different from angiosperm derived from triploid nucleus of fertilized embryo in Silene and Lychns. The petals stamens and the ovary  separated from the calyx by a shortly extended internode.

The pollination is broad about by the help of insects, self pollination is prevented by dichogamy [the ripening of stamen and pistel of flower at different types so that self pollination is prevented] and protandary [stamen first mature the embroy]. The seeds are disperse by water in Stelleria aquatica and by wind is Stellaria media and by birds, human, animals in silene and Aspergula herpensis.