Spermatophyta: Dicotyledonae: Archichlamydeae: Fabales

Polygalaceae - Milkwort family

Exell, A.W. (1960) Polygalaceae Flora Zambesiaca 1(1)

Leistner, O.A. (2005) Seed plants of southern tropical Africa: families and genera SABONET Report No. 26 SABONET, Pretoria

Description of the family

Small trees, shrubs or perennial or annual herbs. Stipules usually 0, but sometimes present and if so, small and gland-like. Leaves alternate (in ours), simple, entire. Sepals 5; two lateral ones often petal-like (wings); two anterior ones sometimes joined. Petals 3-5. Stamens 5-8; filaments usually united in a slit tube. Ovary superior, 1- or 2-locular. Fruit (in ours) a capsule or a samara.

Worldwide: 17 genera and 950 species, ± cosmopolitan, but not in the W Pacific.

Zimbabwe: 2 cultivated genera and 3 cultivated taxa.

Polygala virgata var. decora

Links to cultivated genera:     View: living plant images - herbarium specimen images - all images for this family

GenusContent
Polygala L.Description, Image
Securidaca L.Description, Image

Other sources of information about Polygalaceae:

Our websites:

Flora of Botswana: Polygalaceae
Flora of Caprivi: Polygalaceae
Flora of Malawi: Polygalaceae
Flora of Mozambique: Polygalaceae
Flora of Mozambique: cultivated Polygalaceae
Flora of Zambia: Polygalaceae
Flora of Zimbabwe: Polygalaceae

External websites:

African Plants: A Photo Guide (Senckenberg): Polygalaceae
Google: Web - Images - Scholar
GRIN (Germplasm Resources Information Network) taxonomy for plants report for Polygalaceae
Wikipedia: Polygalaceae


Copyright: Mark Hyde, Bart Wursten, Petra Ballings and Meg Coates Palgrave, 2002-23

Hyde, M.A., Wursten, B.T., Ballings, P. & Coates Palgrave, M. (2023). Flora of Zimbabwe: Cultivated plants: Family page: Polygalaceae.
https://www.zimbabweflora.co.zw/cult/family.php?family_id=180, retrieved 1 April 2023

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