Class
Classification
Subordinate Taxa
Nomenclature
Scientific Name:
Balsaminaceae
Description
Succulent-stemmed herbs, occasionally small shrubs. Lvs simple, alternate or opposite, sometimes whorled, exstipulate. Fls solitary or in cymes, very irregular, ☿. Sepals usually 3, sometimes 5, the posterior (lowermost because of pedicel twisting) sepal spurred, enlarged and petaloid. Petals 5 (nearly always appearing as 3 because of union), very often unequal. Stamens 5; filaments short and flattened; anthers connate around ovary. Ovary superior, 5-celled; placentation axile; ovules numerous; stigmas sessile or nearly so, 5-lobed. Fr. usually a succulent capsule opening violently with the 5 valves twisting and coiling, rarely a berry. Seeds non-endospermic.
[From: Webb et al. (1988) Flora of New Zealand. Volume 4.]
Biostatus
Exotic
| Category | Number |
|---|---|
| Exotic: Fully Naturalised | 3 |
| Exotic: Casual | 3 |
| Total | 6 |
Bibliography
Cronquist, A. 1988: The evolution and classification of flowering plants. The New York Botanic Gardens, New York.
Kubitzki, K. 2004: VI Flowering Plants. Dicotyledons: Celestrales, Oxalidales, Rosales, Cornales, Ericales. Kubitzki, K. (ed.) The Families and Genera of Vascular Plants. Spinger-Verlag, Berlin. Springer-Verlag, Berlin.
Mabberley, D.J. 2008: Mabberley's plant book, a portable dictionary of plants, their classification and uses. Edition 3. Cambridge University Press.
