Colchicaceae

Colchicaceae DC., Essai Propr. Med. Pl. 56. 1804. 'Colchicum Family'

Salient Features

The members are tuberous or cormous perennial herbs, rarely woody.
Leaves simple, distichous to sub-opposite, or verticillate, ovate to linear, parallel veined with distinct midrib.
Inflorescence terminal racemes, cymes, umbels, heads or solitary flower.
Flowers trimerous, bisexual, tepals 3+3, basally connate.
Stamens 3+3, opening by longitudinal slits.
Gynoecium usually of 3 united carpels, ovary superior, each locule with few to many ovules in axile placentation.
Fruit a capsule, loculicidal, or septicidal, rarely fruit a berry.

Diversity:

World- 18 genera, 284 species (The Plant List 2013); 15 genera, 285 species (Christenhusz & Byng 2016); 15 genera, 210 species (Mabberley 2017); 16 genera, 287 species (CoL 2021)
India - 3 genera, 9 species (BSI, 2021)
Indian Himalaya- 4 genera, 6 species
Uttarakhand - 3 genera, 3 species (Uniyal et al. 2007)

General Characters:

Colchicaceae in Watson & Dallwitz (1992 onwards)
Colchicaceae in Stevens (2001 onwards)
Colchicaceae in POWO 2021 (Plants of the World Online)
Colchicaceae in Wikipedia

Systematic Position of Family in Different Systems of Classifications:

Systematic position in 2-Superkingdom, 7-Kingdom classification of Ruggiero et al. (2015)

Super Kingdom- Eukaryota, Kingdom- Plantae, Subkingdom- Viridiplantae, Infrakingdom- Streptophyta, Superphylum- Embryophyta, Phylum- Tracheophyta, Subphylum- Spermatophytina, Superclass- Angiospermae, Class- Magnoliopsida, Superorder- Lilianae, Order- Liliales

Bentham & Hooker (1862-83)

Class : Dicotyledons
Series : Coronarieae

(Included in Liliaceae)

Engler & Prantl (1887-1915)

Kingdom : Plantae
Division : Embryophyta Siphonogama
Subdivision : Angiospermae
Class : Monocotyledoneae
Order : Liliflorae
Suborder : Liliineae

(Included in Liliaceae)

Hutchinson (1973) ?

Phylum : Angiospermae
Subphylum : Monocotyledones
Division : Corolliferae
Order :

Cronquist (1988) ?

Division : Magnoliophyta
Class : Magnoliopsida
Subclass : Asteridae
Order : Scrophulariales

Thorne & Reveal (2007)

Class : Magnoliopsida
Subclass : Liliidae
Super Order: Lilianae
Order : Liliales

Takhtajan (2009)

Phylum : Magnoliophyta
Class : Liliopsida
Subclass : Liliidae
Super Order : Lilianae
Order : Liliales

Reveal (2012)

Class : Equisetopsida
Subclass : Magnoliidae
Super Order : Lilianae
Order : Liliales
Suborder : Alstroemeriineae

APG-IV (2016)

Clade : Angiosperms
Clade : Monocots
Order : Liliales

Shipunov (2020)

Class : Angiospermae
Subclass : Liliidae
Order : Liliales
Suborder : Liliineae

(Merged with Lamiaceae)

Genera & Species in Pantnagar

To see larger images please click on the names