Brassicacea / Crucifearae

Brassicacea/Crucifearae

Characteristic: Mostly annual or perennial herb, rarely small shrub, such as Alyssum spinosum, tall shrub reaching up to 2m or 6.5 feet in height e.g Heliophila glauca from south Africa & very rarely climber Heliophila scandens [3m or 10 feet].

Leaves: Usually alternate & without stipule. The hairs of indumentums vary from simple forked, many branched, star shaped or peltate which are useful in identification of genera & species.

Inflorescences: Is usually raceme, corymbose, usually without bracts or bracteoles.

Flower: Basic floral structure is highly characteristic & constant. 4 sepals, 4petals, cruciform.

Androecium: Stamen 6, 4 long & 2 short [tetradynamous] in 2 whorls that is tetradynamous, stamen of each inner pair sometime connate those of the outer pair sometime winged or toothed, 1 or 4 basal grains are often present. anther 2 cells, rarely 1 cell, dehiscence longitudinally.

Gynoecium: (Carpel/Pistil) Consist of superior ovary, the ovary with 2 parietal placenta ovules usually few to many born on the periphery of the ovary wall, style 1 or obsolete. The stigma 2 is characteristic as a flower is a fruit which is basically a bilocular capsule with false septum. Usually dehiscent opening by 2 valves from the below, when it is at least 3 times as long as broad silicula.

Fruit: The fruit may sometime be indehiscent breaking in to single seeded portion. The fruit ranges from linear oblong [longer than broad] or ovate to spherical &may be winged or not, stalked or not.

Seed; may be in 1 or 2 rows. The rang of variation shown in fruit type is vast & fruit character are relied upon very extensively in classification of family, genus, species or from family to species level. Seeds with large embryo and little or no endosperm.

Economics Importance

Distribution; cosmopolitan, mostly temperate with centre of diversity in Mediterranean region [Italy ,France etc] south west & central Asia.

Economic uses: production of oil; a large family of major economic important containing a wide range of crop plants.

  Ø grown as salad

  Ø  for oil seeds

  Ø animal feed

  Ø condiments

  Ø several well known garden ornamental  plants

  Ø some medicinal plant such as Eruca sativa

Common species:

  Ø Brassica napa

  Ø B.compestris

  Ø Eruca sativa

  Ø Boleraceae

  Ø Raphanus sativa

  Ø Iberis

  Ø Malconia cabulica

  Ø Arabidopsis sp.

  Ø Sisymbrium irio

  Ø Coronopis didymous sp.

  Ø Alyssum sp. [garden ornamental plants 

  Ø Arabis [rock cress]

  Ø Nosturticum officinal [aquatic plants white flower leaves used as a vegetable.,