Asphodelaceae Juss.

Asphodelaceae, Christopher Whitehouse. Flora of Tropical East Africa. 2002

Morphology General Habit

Perennial rhizomatous herbs usually containing anthraquinones thatcolour the rhizome and roots yellowish inside; roots fibrous, sometimes swollen or occasionally with tubers

Morphology Leaves

Leaves in a basal rosette, or rarely distichous, rarely on a short woody stem, lanceolate to linear or terete

Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences

Inflorescence simple or paniculate; pedicels solitary and subtended by a single bract, not articulated or articulated at the apex Peduncle mostly naked, occasionally a few sterile bracts below the inflorescence

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers

Flowers bisexual, hypogynous; tepals 3+3, free or fused

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium

Stamens 3+3, free or slightly fused to the perianth; filaments filiform; anthers dorsifixed, ± versatile, dehiscing longitudinally introrsely

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Gynoecium

Ovary 3-locular, with 2–several ovules per locule; placentation axile; style slender with a small stigma

Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits

Fruit a loculicidal capsule

Morphology Reproductive morphology Seeds

Seeds enveloped by a dull brown or greyish black aril

Gemma Bramley, Anna Trias-Blasi & Richard Wilford (2023). The Kew Temperate Plant Families Identification Handbook. Kew Publishing Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew

Recognition

Characters of similar families: Amaryllidaceae: usually bulbous, inflorescences scapose, pseudoumbellate, enclosed by fleshy spathaceous bracts in bud. Asparagaceae: inflorescences usually racemose, also spicate, paniculate or cymose; Asphodelaceae and Asparagaceae have few morphological characters to distinguish them, comparison at the subfamily or generic level may be more helpful. Iridaceae: usually with isobifacial leaves, stamens 3, ovary inferior, styles branched. Liliaceae: bulbous herbs with cauline leaves, flowers solitary or more rarely arranged in a thyrse, raceme or umbel.

Morphology General Habit

Herbs or arborescent (rarely climbing), perennial or annual-Underground organs usually rhizomes or with tuberous or fibrous roots

Morphology General Hair

Hairs uncommon

Morphology Leaves

Usually ovate to linear with a sheathing base, rarely petiolulate or succulent with spiny margins; venation parallel Leaves rosulate or distichous, basal or cauline

Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences

Inflorescences bracteate, usually an axillary or terminal panicle, raceme or cyme or a combination of these, occasionally flowers solitary

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers

Flowers bisexual, pedicels often articulated, actinomorphic to somewhat zygomorphic- Tepals free and spreading or occasionally fused and tubular

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium Stamens

Stamens 6 basifixed or dorsifixed, introrse or extrorse, filaments glabrous or papillose

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Gynoecium Ovary

Ovary superior, 3-locular; style usually filiform; stigma usually minute, occasionally capitate or trilobed

Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits

Rarely a berry, schizocarp or nut-like and indehiscent or rupturing Fruit usually a loculicidal capsule

Morphology Reproductive morphology Seeds

Seeds 3 to numerous, usually black.

Distribution

Asphodelaceae as defined by APG IV is morphologically heterogenous, and it includes many taxa traditionally placed in separate families, making the family difficult to recognise morphologically. A cosmopolitan family of 40 genera and ca. 1,000 species made up of three subfamilies: Asphodeloideae (predominantly southern Africa), Hemerocallidoideae (predominantly Asia to Australia) and Xanthorrhoeoideae (Australia).

Description Author

Anna Haigh

Asphodelaceae, S. Kativu. Flora Zambesiaca 12:3. 2001

Morphology General Habit

Perennial herbs, often herbaceous geophytes perennating by rhizomes, acaulescent, rarely caulescent; rhizome often yellow when cut, sometimes pinkish

Morphology Roots

Roots fibrous, sometimes swollen or fusiform

Morphology Leaves

Leaves in a basal rosette, or sometimes ± distichous on a short woody stem; lamina linear, flat to ± terete

Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences

Inflorescences terminal or lateral, pedunculate with flowers racemosely or paniculately arranged; peduncle (scape) erect, leafless, occasionally with 1–3 sterile bracts below the inflorescence; pedicels subtended by a bract, non-articulated, or articulated at the apex

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers

Flowers bisexual, 3-merous, actinomorphic; perianth petaloid, segments (tepals) of 3 inner and 3 outer, free or fused, white or pink, greenish- or pale yellow, yellow or red

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium

Stamens of 3 inner and 3 outer, free or slightly fused to the perianth; filaments filiform, glabrous, scabrid or hairy; anthers dorsifixed, ± versatile, longitudinally introrse dehiscent

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Gynoecium

Ovary superior, 3-locular with axile placentation; ovules 2–many per locule; style slender with a small stigma

Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits

Fruit a capsule with loculicidal dehiscence

Morphology Reproductive morphology Seeds

Seeds dull brown or greyish-black, sometimes arillate

Chemistry

Anthraquinones present in some taxa, giving the rhizome and sometimes the roots a yellowish colour inside

Hemerocallidaceae, C. Zimudzi & G. V. Pope. Flora Zambesiaca 12:3. 2001

Morphology General Habit

Perennial herbs or subshrubs, glabrous, rhizomatous

Morphology Leaves

Leaves distichous, sometimes with bases overlapping (equitant), clustered or evenly spaced on the stem, ovate to linear, sheathing at the base or not; lamina ± flattened throughout, or folded together lengthwise in the lower part and opened out in the upper part

Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences

Inflorescence terminal, paniculiform or of a solitary flower

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers

Flowers hypogynous or perigynous, actinomorphic or zygomorphic, usually articulated on pedicels

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Perianth

Perianth wholly or partially marcescent; tepals 6, free or shortly united into a tube

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium

Stamens 6, all free and hypogynous or inserted on tepal bases, or all connate at the base with 3 hypogynous and 3 inserted on tepal bases; anther filaments ornamented or not; anthers basifixed or dorsifixed, dehiscing latrorsely by pores or slits Pollen trichotomosulcate (sulcate in Hemerocallis)

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Gynoecium

Ovary syncarpous, 3- or 1-locular; style simple, terminating in a small capitate stigma or tuft of short hairs; ovules anatropous on axile or parietal placentas, bitegmic, 1–numerous on each placenta

Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits

Fruit a berry or capsule; seeds black, exarillate

Aloaceae, S. Kativu. Flora Zambesiaca 12:3. 2001

Morphology General Habit

Herbs, shrubs, or trees, often with thickened roots

Morphology Leaves

Leaves usually perennial, fleshy, sheathing at the base and occasionally forming an underground bulb, in rosettes or spirally arranged, sometimes distichous, linear to lanceolate or ovate to triangular-conical; the margins with spine-tipped teeth or entire and sometimes ciliate; lamina smooth, rough or warty

Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences

Inflorescences pedunculate with flowers in 1–several terminal and axillary racemes, simple or paniculately arranged; bracts scarious, often sterile below the racemes, sometimes leaf-like on the lower part of the peduncle

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers

Flowers bisexual, 3-merous, often zygomorphic, pedicellate, red, orange, yellow, white, or green, often bird-pollinated; perianth-segments 6, fused in the lower part to form a tube, the lobes in 2 whorls; stamens 6, inserted at the base of the ovary; ovary superior, 3-locular; style simple

Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits

Capsule dehiscing loculicidally

Morphology Reproductive morphology Seeds

Seeds several to numerous in each locule, often winged