- Family:
- Portulacaceae Juss.
Portulaca L.

[FZ]
Portulacaceae, H. Wild. Flora Zambesiaca 1:2. 1961
- Morphology General Habit
- Annual, biennial or perennial herbs; branches erect or often prostrate.
- Morphology Leaves
- Leaves shortly petiolate or sessile, opposite or alternate, fleshy, cylindric or plane, glabrous (at least in our species); stipules divided into numerous hairs or more rarely membranous or absent.
- Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers
- Flowers sessile, solitary or a few together at the ends of the branches and surrounded by a group of 2-several apical leaves.
- Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx
- Sepals 2, unequal, the larger slightly enfolding the margins of the smaller, connate into a tube below, which is adnate to the base of the capsule.
- Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla
- Petals 4–5 (6), fugacious, free or ± united, marcescent and enfolding the ripe capsule.
- Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium Stamens
- Stamens 4 — c. 100, inserted on the corolla or at its base.
- Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Gynoecium Pistil
- Ovary semi-inferior, 1-locular, at least in the upper part; placentation free central; ovules many or very rarely 1 or several; style simple with 2-several stigmas.
- Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
- Capsule dehiscing transversely.
- Morphology Reproductive morphology Seeds
- Seeds 1-?, usually reniform, smooth or variously tuberculate or granulate.
[FSOM]
M. Thulin et al. Flora of Somalia, Vol. 1-4 [updated 2008] https://plants.jstor.org/collection/FLOS
- Morphology General Habit
- Annual or perennial succulent herbs, sometimes woody at base or with tuberous roots
- Morphology Leaves
- Leaves alternate or opposite, nodes with scales and/or hairs, restricted to axils in alternate-leaved species (sect. Portulaca) or in complete whorls around nodes of opposite-leaved species (sect. Neossia)
- Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
- Flowers in terminal sessile heads surrounded by an involucre of usually leaf-like bracts and often many hairs
- Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx
- Sepals joined at base, adnate to base of ovary
- Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla
- Petals 4–5(–6) (or more in cultivated plants), fused at the base to the sepals and ovary, usually conspicuous but open only for a short time in sunny weather
- Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium Stamens
- Stamens 4–c. 100, inserted in a ring at base of petals
- Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Gynoecium Ovary
- Ovary semi-inferior, the basal part fused to the perianth; ovules many; stigmas 2–6
- Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
- Capsule with circumscissile dehiscence, the top forming a cap (“operculum”) often enclosed in the dried perianth
- Morphology Reproductive morphology Seeds
- Seeds usually numerous, sometimes with metallic lustre.
- Note
- Many accounts refer to the hairs and scales associated with the leaves as modified stipules, but this is probably wrong as they are clearly axillary structures. The hairs are sometimes obviously, probably always, derived from scales, which have split longitudinally into many very narrow segments. The species with opposite leaves (sect. Neossia) are relatively well-defined but those with alternate leaves (sect. Portulaca) belong to poorly known groups best developed elsewhere.
- Distribution
- The complex is particularly well represented in the New World and without extensive revision of the whole complex it is difficult to be sure of the delimitation of species world-wide.
[FTEA]
Portulacaceae, Sylvia M. Phillips. Flora of Tropical East Africa. 2002
- Morphology General Habit
- Succulent annual or perennial herbs or infrequently shrublets; stems articulated or not; roots sometimes tuberous
- Morphology Leaves
- Leaves alternate or opposite, fleshy, linear to obovate, shortly petiolate, caducous, often absent at flowering time; axillary hairs and scales present, these sometimes conspicuously encircling the nodes and overlapping the leaves
- Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
- Inflorescence terminal though sometimes overtopped by subsequent growth; peduncle expanded into a flat platform bearing one or more sessile flowers and bordered by a circlet of involucral leaves, or inflorescence rarely an open cyme (1 species in East Africa); involucral bracts enclosing woolly hairs and sometimes triangular scales; flowers fugacious, developing in succession
- Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx
- Sepals ovate-triangular, basally connate, hooded
- Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla
- Petals 4–5(–6), adnate basally to the sepals, varying slightly in width
- Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium Stamens
- Stamens several to numerous, adherent to the petals in a single whorl, filaments connate basally
- Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Gynoecium Pistil
- Ovary semi-inferior, multi-ovulate; style usually elongate and disarticulating at maturity; stigma branched, the branches recurving
- Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
- Capsule circumscissile, basal portion rim-like to infundibuliform, membranous to coriaceous, persistent, the dome-shaped top usually cartilaginous, brittle, forming a lid carrying the persistent collapsed perianth
- Morphology Reproductive morphology Seeds
- Seeds many, grey, brown or black (immature seeds brown), sometimes iridescent with a metallic sheen, reniform to rounded, smooth or often ornamented with tubercles or pegs.
Native to:
Afghanistan, Alabama, Albania, Aldabra, Algeria, Angola, Argentina Northeast, Argentina Northwest, Argentina South, Arizona, Arkansas, Aruba, Ascension, Assam, Austria, Azores, Bahamas, Bangladesh, Belarus, Belgium, Belize, Benin, Bolivia, Borneo, Botswana, Brazil North, Brazil Northeast, Brazil South, Brazil Southeast, Brazil West-Central, Bulgaria, Burkina, Burundi, California, Cameroon, Canary Is., Cape Provinces, Caroline Is., Cayman Is., Central African Repu, Central European Rus, Chad, Chagos Archipelago, Chile North, China South-Central, China Southeast, Christmas I., Colombia, Colorado, Comoros, Congo, Cook Is., Corse, Costa Rica, Cuba, Cyprus, Czechoslovakia, Djibouti, Dominican Republic, East Aegean Is., Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Fiji, Florida, France, Free State, French Guiana, Gabon, Galápagos, Gambia, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Gilbert Is., Greece, Guatemala, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Gulf of Guinea Is., Gulf States, Guyana, Hainan, Haiti, Hawaii, Honduras, Howland-Baker Is., Hungary, India, Iran, Iraq, Italy, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Jawa, Kansas, Kazan-retto, Kenya, Kirgizstan, Kriti, Kuwait, KwaZulu-Natal, Laccadive Is., Lebanon-Syria, Leeward Is., Lesser Sunda Is., Liberia, Libya, Line Is., Louisiana, Madeira, Malawi, Malaya, Maldives, Mali, Maluku, Marcus I., Marianas, Marquesas, Marshall Is., Mauritania, Mauritius, Mexican Pacific Is., Mexico Central, Mexico Gulf, Mexico Northeast, Mexico Northwest, Mexico Southeast, Mexico Southwest, Mississippi, Missouri, Morocco, Mozambique, Mozambique Channel I, Myanmar, Namibia, Nansei-shoto, Netherlands, Netherlands Antilles, Nevada, New Caledonia, New Guinea, New Mexico, New South Wales, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, Niue, North Carolina, North Caucasus, Northern Provinces, Northern Territory, Ogasawara-shoto, Oklahoma, Oman, Pakistan, Palestine, Panamá, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Phoenix Is., Pitcairn Is., Poland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Queensland, Rodrigues, Romania, Rwanda, Réunion, Samoa, Sardegna, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Seychelles, Sicilia, Sierra Leone, Sinai, Society Is., Socotra, Somalia, South Australia, South Carolina, South China Sea, South European Russi, Southwest Caribbean, Spain, Sri Lanka, St.Helena, Sudan, Sulawesi, Sumatera, Suriname, Swaziland, Switzerland, Taiwan, Tanzania, Tennessee, Texas, Togo, Tokelau-Manihiki, Tonga, Transcaucasus, Trinidad-Tobago, Tuamotu, Tubuai Is., Tunisia, Turkey, Turkey-in-Europe, Turks-Caicos Is., Tuvalu, Uganda, Uruguay, Utah, Venezuela, Venezuelan Antilles, Vietnam, Virginia, Wake I., Wallis-Futuna Is., Western Australia, Windward Is., Yemen, Yugoslavia, Zambia, Zaïre, Zimbabwe
Introduced into:
Alberta, Altay, Amur, Andaman Is., Baleares, Bermuda, British Columbia, Cambodia, Cape Verde, Central American Pac, Chile Central, Chile South, China North-Central, Cocos (Keeling) Is., Connecticut, Delaware, Denmark, Desventurados Is., District of Columbia, East European Russia, East Himalaya, Easter Is., Finland, Great Britain, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Inner Mongolia, Iowa, Juan Fernández Is., Kamchatka, Kazakhstan, Kentucky, Korea, Krym, Laos, Lesotho, Maine, Manchuria, Manitoba, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Nauru, Nebraska, Nepal, New Brunswick, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, New Zealand North, Nicobar Is., Norfolk Is., North Dakota, Nova Scotia, Ohio, Ontario, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Primorye, Prince Edward I., Qinghai, Québec, Rhode I., Saskatchewan, Solomon Is., South Dakota, Sweden, Tadzhikistan, Thailand, Tibet, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Vermont, Washington, West Himalaya, West Siberia, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming, Xinjiang
- Portulaca africana (Danin & H.G.Baker) Danin
- Portulaca almeviae Ocampo
- Portulaca amilis Speg.
- Portulaca anceps A.Rich.
- Portulaca argentinensis Speg.
- Portulaca aurantiaca Proctor
- Portulaca australis Endl.
- Portulaca badamica S.R.Yadav & Dalavi
- Portulaca bicolor F.Muell.
- Portulaca biloba Urb.
- Portulaca brevifolia Urb.
- Portulaca bulbifera M.G.Gilbert
- Portulaca californica D.Legrand
- Portulaca canariensis Danin & Reyes-Bet.
- Portulaca cardenasiana D.Legrand
- Portulaca caulerpoides Britton & P.Wilson
- Portulaca centrali-africana R.E.Fr.
- Portulaca chacoana D.Legrand
- Portulaca ciferrii Chiov.
- Portulaca clavigera R.Geesink
- Portulaca colombiana D.Legrand
- Portulaca commutata M.G.Gilbert
- Portulaca confertifolia Hauman
- Portulaca conoidea S.M.Phillips
- Portulaca constricta M.G.Gilbert
- Portulaca conzattii P.Wilson
- Portulaca coralloides S.M.Phillips
- Portulaca cryptopetala Speg.
- Portulaca cubensis Britton & P.Wilson
- Portulaca cyclophylla F.Muell.
- Portulaca cypria Danin
- Portulaca daninii Galasso, Banfi & Soldano
- Portulaca decipiens Poelln.
- Portulaca decorticans M.G.Gilbert
- Portulaca dhofarica M.G.Gilbert
- Portulaca diegoi Mattos
- Portulaca digyna F.Muell.
- Portulaca dodomaensis M.G.Gilbert
- Portulaca echinosperma Hauman
- Portulaca edulis Danin & Bagella
- Portulaca elatior Mart. ex Rohrb.
- Portulaca elongata Rusby
- Portulaca eruca Hauman
- Portulaca erythraeae Schweinf.
- Portulaca fascicularis Peter
- Portulaca filifolia F.Muell.
- Portulaca filsonii J.H.Willis
- Portulaca fischeri Pax
- Portulaca foliosa Ker Gawl.
- Portulaca fragilis Poelln.
- Portulaca frieseana Poelln.
- Portulaca fulgens Griseb.
- Portulaca gilliesii Hook.
- Portulaca giuliettiae T.Vieira & A.A.Coelho
- Portulaca goiasensis T.Vieira & A.A.Coelho
- Portulaca gracilis Poelln.
- Portulaca grandiflora Hook.
- Portulaca grandis Peter
- Portulaca granulatostellulata (Poelln.) Ricceri & Arrigoni
- Portulaca greenwayi M.G.Gilbert
- Portulaca guanajuatensis Ocampo
- Portulaca halimoides L.
- Portulaca hatschbachii D.Legrand
- Portulaca hereroensis Schinz
- Portulaca heterophylla Peter
- Portulaca hirsutissima Cambess.
- Portulaca hoehnei D.Legrand
- Portulaca howellii (D.Legrand) Eliasson
- Portulaca humilis Peter
- Portulaca impolita (Danin & H.G.Baker) Danin
- Portulaca insignis Steyerm.
- Portulaca intraterranea J.M.Black
- Portulaca johnstonii Henrickson
- Portulaca juliomartinezii Ocampo
- Portulaca kermesina N.E.Br.
- Portulaca kuriensis M.G.Gilbert
- Portulaca lakshminarasimhaniana S.R.Yadav & Dalavi
- Portulaca lutea Sol. ex G.Forst.
- Portulaca macbridei D.Legrand
- Portulaca macrantha Ricceri & Arrigoni
- Portulaca macrorhiza R.Geesink
- Portulaca macrosperma D.Legrand
- Portulaca masonii D.Legrand
- Portulaca massaica S.M.Phillips
- Portulaca matthewsii Ocampo
- Portulaca mauritiensis Poelln.
- Portulaca mexicana P.Wilson
- Portulaca meyeri D.Legrand
- Portulaca minensis D.Legrand
- Portulaca minuta Correll
- Portulaca molokiniensis Hobdy
- Portulaca monanthoides Lodé
- Portulaca mucronata Link
- Portulaca mucronulata D.Legrand
- Portulaca nicaraguensis (Danin & H.G.Baker) Danin
- Portulaca nitida (Danin & H.G.Baker) Ricceri & Arrigoni
- Portulaca nivea Poelln.
- Portulaca nogalensis Chiov.
- Portulaca oblonga Peter
- Portulaca obtusa Poelln.
- Portulaca obtusifolia D.Legrand
- Portulaca okinawensis E.Walker & Tawada
- Portulaca oleracea L.
- Portulaca oligosperma F.Muell.
- Portulaca olosirwa S.M.Phillips
- Portulaca papillatostellulata (Danin & H.G.Baker) Danin
- Portulaca papulifera D.Legrand
- Portulaca papulosa Schltdl.
- Portulaca perennis R.E.Fr.
- Portulaca peteri Poelln.
- Portulaca philippii I.M.Johnst.
- Portulaca pilosa L.
- Portulaca psammotropha Hance
- Portulaca pusilla Kunth
- Portulaca pygmaea Steyerm.
- Portulaca quadrifida L.
- Portulaca ragonesei D.Legrand
- Portulaca ramosa Peter
- Portulaca rausii Danin
- Portulaca rhodesiana R.A.Dyer & E.A.Bruce
- Portulaca rotundifolia R.E.Fr.
- Portulaca rubricaulis Kunth
- Portulaca rzedowskiana Ocampo
- Portulaca samhaensis A.G.Mill.
- Portulaca samoensis Poelln.
- Portulaca sanctae-martae Poelln.
- Portulaca sardoa Danin, Bagella & Marrosu
- Portulaca saxifragoides Welw. ex Oliv.
- Portulaca sclerocarpa A.Gray
- Portulaca sedifolia N.E.Br.
- Portulaca sedoides Welw. ex Oliv.
- Portulaca sicula Danin, Domina & Raimondo
- Portulaca smallii P.Wilson
- Portulaca socotrana Domina & Raimondo
- Portulaca somalica N.E.Br.
- Portulaca stellulatotuberculata Poelln.
- Portulaca stuhlmannii Poelln.
- Portulaca suffrutescens Engelm.
- Portulaca suffruticosa Wight
- Portulaca sundaensis Poelln.
- Portulaca teretifolia Kunth
- Portulaca thellusonii Lindl.
- Portulaca tingoensis J.F.Macbr.
- Portulaca trianthemoides Bremek.
- Portulaca trituberculata Danin, Domina & Raimondo
- Portulaca tuberculata León
- Portulaca tuberosa Roxb.
- Portulaca umbraticola Kunth
- Portulaca werdermannii Poelln.
- Portulaca wightiana Wall. ex Wight & Arn.
- Portulaca yecorensis Henrickson & T.Van Devender
- Portulaca zaffranii Danin
Portulaca L. appears in other Kew resources:
Date | Reference | Identified As | Barcode | Type Status | Has image? |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Rico, L. [1563], Bolivia | K000295303 | No | |||
Rico, L. [1459], Bolivia | K000295376 | No | |||
Rico, L. [1606], Bolivia | K000295226 | No | |||
Rico, L. [1604], Bolivia | K000295224 | No |
First published in Sp. Pl.: 445 (1753)
Accepted by
- Govaerts, R., Nic Lughadha, E., Black, N., Turner, R. & Paton, A. (2021). The World Checklist of Vascular Plants, a continuously updated resource for exploring global plant diversity. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41597-021-00997-6 Scientific Data 8: 215.
Literature
Flora of West Tropical Africa
- von Poellnitz in Fedde Rep. 37: 240–320 (1934).
- —F.T.A. 1: 148
Flora Zambesiaca
- Gen. Pl. ed. 5: 204 (1754).
- Sp. Pl. 1: 445 (1753)
Flora of Somalia
- Flora Somalia, Vol 1, (1993) Author: by M. G. Gilbert [updated by M. Thulin 2008]
- Geesink in Blumea 17: 275–301 (1969).
- von Poellnitz in Feddes Rep. 37: 240–320 (1934)
- von Poellnitz in Feddes Rep. 48: 174–195 (1940)
Flora of Tropical East Africa
- Poelln. in F.R. 37: 240–320 (1934)
- Poelln. in F.R. 48: 174–195 (1940)
- R. Geesink in Blumea 17: 275–301 (1969)
- S.M. Phillips in K.B. 55: 687–689 (2000)
- Sp. Pl.: 445 (1753)
- in Biol. Skr. 54: 31–48 (2001)
-
Flora Zambesiaca
Flora Zambesiaca
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0
-
Flora of Somalia
Flora of Somalia
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0
-
Flora of Tropical East Africa
Flora of Tropical East Africa
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0
-
Herbarium Catalogue Specimens
-
Kew Backbone Distributions
The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Selected Plant Families 2022. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and http://apps.kew.org/wcsp/
© Copyright 2017 World Checklist of Selected Plant Families. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0
-
Kew Names and Taxonomic Backbone
The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Selected Plant Families 2022. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and http://apps.kew.org/wcsp/
© Copyright 2017 International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Selected Plant Families. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0
-
Kew Science Photographs
Copyright applied to individual images
-
Plants and People Africa
Common Names from Plants and People Africa http://www.plantsandpeopleafrica.com/
© Plants and People Africa http://www.plantsandpeopleafrica.com http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/