|
Salicaceae/Flacourtiaceae
One of the consequences of recent phylogenetic work has been to show clearly - with abundant molecular evidence - that Salix and Populus (formerly Salicaceae sens. strict.) are merely two genera nested in the middle of the Flacourtiaceae. With hindsight this makes good sense (indeed many Flacourts look rather like willows). The APG takes what is the only possible course of action: that is to rename the Flacourtiaceae the Salicaceae (as Salicaceae has priority over Flacourtiaceae).
Thus many commonly grown woody plants such as Idesia and Casearia should now be placed in the Salicaceae.
Happily this gives much more information to the user in the temperate northern hemisphere- i.e. that the genus is related to the well-known genera Salix and Populus, an interesting fact. "Flacourtiaceae" only conveys a relationship to Flacourtia, which many people outside the tropics are not familiar with. The name change is not so convenient for tropical botanists however.
Last edited by qcronk; February 20th, 2004 at 10:49 PM.
|
