Internal links: Angiosperms > Eudicots > Superastrids > Campanulids > Campanulids > Asterales > Asteraceae
External links: Angiosperms > Eudicots > Superastrids > Campanulids > Campanulids > Asterales > Asteraceae
Wikipedia links: Angiosperms > Eudicots > Asterids > Asterales > Asteraceae
Other links: Lucid: https://keys.lucidcentral.org/keys/v3/FFPA/key/FFPA/Media/Html/Asteraceae.htm#:~:text=One%20of%20the%20largest%2C%20most,forests%20and%20other%20closed%20forests
General
One of the largest, most widespread and successful families of flowering plants, the daisy family has representatives throughout Australia in almost every vegetation type
Iit is most common in fairly open communities, with few species in rain forests and other closed forests
It is often a dominant family in the arid zone after rains, and in the high alps
Many species are naturalized, and occur in disturbed places and on roadsides; some are serious weeds
Characteristic features of the family Asteraceae in Australia include:
mostly herbaceous, though some are shrubs and a few form small trees
flowers almost always in distinctive "daisy-heads" comprising many small flowers together making up a larger flower-like inflorescence, often with differentiated marginal flowers functioning like petals of a normal flower
flowers 5-partite, with tubular corolla and calyx replaced by scales, spines or hair-like bristles
anthers united into a tube around the style (but filaments free)
ovary inferior, comprising a single locule with one ovule, forming a usually dry, seed-like fruit (cypsela) with the persistent calyx (pappus) aiding dispersal on wind or in animals' fur
Description
Habit
Evergreen shrubs, woody, or herbaceous vines climbing by tendrils, or annual, biennial or perennial terrestrial herbs; rarely small trees or aquatic herbs rooted in the substrate with their leaves emergent
Tendrils sometimes terminating leaves
If perennial herbs then perennating by tubers or taproots
Vegetative reproduction absent or by tubers or stolons
Stems unarmed or rarely with prickles or spines arising from the stem surface; internodes solid, spongy or pithy or hollow, terete or distinctly angular
Internal secretions not obvious or of milky sap (latex) or coloured sap
Plants glabrous or with simple, glandular or non-glandular, unicellular or uniseriate hairs
Leaves
Leaves well developed or rarely much reduced, alternate and spiral or opposite, or if herbs cauline, all or mostly basal, or both basal and cauline, petiolate, subsessile or sessile
Stipules and stipellae absent
Lamina simple or once compound, imparipinnate, symmetric or rarely asymmetric, filiform, acicular, subulate, linear, lanceolate, ovate, elliptic, oblanceolate, ovate, oblong or orbicular; base cuneate, attenuate, rounded, cordate or lobed, rarely auriculate, hastate, sagittate or oblique; margins entire, crenate, dentate or serrate or sinuate, ±flat, revolute, recurved, involute or incurved
Venation pinnate, with the midrib conspicuous, and the tertiary venation reticulate or not
Surfaces not punctate; herbaceous, leathery, succulent or membranous or papery; distinctive odour absent or aromatic or foetid
Domatia absent or consisting of pits or pockets in the vein angles
Flowers
Male and female flowers occurring on the same plant, or bisexual flowers and either male or female flowers occurring on the same plant, or bisexual and male and female flowers together, or with all the flowers bisexual. Inflorescences terminal or axillary, consisting of 1–many capitula of florets
Bracts present, usually involucral
Bracteoles vestigial or absent. Pollination by insects or rarely by wind. Flowers (florets) odourless, fragrant or malodorous; sessile
Floral nectaries absent or on the carpels
Perianth of 1 whorl only, or apparently of 2 very dissimilar whorls, rarely absent or vestigial
True calyx absent, usually replaced by a regular, papery structure of 0–numerous plumed hairs (pappus), bristles or scales
Corolla fused, of one, two or three types: regular (disk florets), irregular or ligulate (ray florets) and filiform (disk or ray florets), funnel-shaped, salver-shaped or tubular, often 1-lipped; disk florets (0–) 3–5-lobed; ray florets (0–) 1-lobed, entire or 3–5-toothed, valvate in bud; florets white, cream, yellow, orange, red, pink, magenta, purple, violet or blue, without contrasting markings, or streaked, spotted, etc, membranous; the disk and ray florets often of markedly different colour
Fertile stamens 5, not clearly correlated with the outer perianth lobes (pappus, bracts or scales, if present), alternating with the corolla lobes (regular flowers), at least partly fused to perianth segments, free of the ovary and style, fused by their anthers, all ±equal
Staminal filaments free. Anthers dorsifixed, not versatile, opening inwards by longitudinal slits; 2-celled; with apical or basal appendages
Ovary inferior. Carpels 2, fused; ovary with 1 locule
Style terminal, single and unbranched, or single and branched above
Ovule 1, sessile; placentation basal
Fruit
Fruit a dry or fleshy indehiscent cypsela or a drupe; the perianth on the maturing fruit deciduous, rotting or liquefying or dry and persistent
Disseminule macro-surface featureless or with straight hairs or pappus; micro-surface ±smooth, tuberculate, papillate, echinate, verrucose or costate, white, cream, blue, green, brown, grey or black, glossy or dull
Seeds 1 per fruit. Aril absent. Cotyledons 2. Embryo straight
Note: this description has been generated from the coded data compiled for the key.; any errors in the key data will be reflected in the descriptions
A treatment of the family Asteraceae has not yet been published in the Flora of Australia. It will appear in Volumes 37 & 38.
Australian genera of Asteraceae (as recognised for the Flora of Australia)
† = some species native, others introduced
* = all species introduced
Native genera:
Abrotanella
Acanthocladium
Acanthospermum
Achnophora
Acmella
Acomis
Actinobole
Actites
Adenostemma
Allopterigeron
Ammobium
Anemocarpa
Angianthus
Apalochlamys
Argentipallium
Argyroglottis
Arrhenechthites
Asteridea
Athrixia
Basedowia
Bedfordia
Bellida
Blainvillea
Blennospora
Blumea
BrachyglottisAbrotanella
Acanthocladium
Acanthospermum
Achnophora
Acmella
Acomis
Actinobole
Actites
Adenostemma
Allopterigeron
Ammobium
Anemocarpa
Angianthus
Apalochlamys
Argentipallium
Argyroglottis
Arrhenechthites
Asteridea
Athrixia
Basedowia
Bedfordia
Bellida
Blainvillea
Blennospora
Blumea
Brachyglottis
Brachyscome
Bracteantha
Calocephalus
Calomeria
Calotis
Camptacra
Carthamus
Cassinia
Celmisia
Centipeda
Centratherum
Cephalipterum
Cephalosorus
Ceratogyne
Chondropyxis
Chrysocephalum
Chrysogonum
Chthonocephalus
Coleocoma
Craspedia
Cratystylis
Cryptostemma
Cymbonotus
Decazesia
Dichrocephala
Dichromochlamys
Dimorphocoma
Dimorphotheca
Dithyrostegia
Eclipta
Elachanthus
Elephantopus
Enydra
Epaltes
Epitriche
Eriochlamys
Erodiophyllum
Erymophyllum
Euchiton
Eupatorium
Eurybiopsis
Ewartia
Flaveria
Gamolepis
Gilruthia
Glossocardia
Glossogyne
Glossocardia
Gnephosis
Gratwickia
Gynura
Haeckeria
Haegiela
Helichrysum
Helipterum
Hemistepta
Hyalochlamys
Hyalosperma
Isoetopsis
Ixiochlamys
Ixiolaena
Ixodia
Kippistia
Lagenifera
Lagenophora
Launaea
Lawrencella
Lemooria
Leptinella
Leptorhynchos
Leucochrysum
Leucophyta
Leuzea
Lordhowea
Melanthera
Microseris
Millotia
Minuria
Moonia
Myriocephalus
Nablonium
Neotysonia
Odixia
Olearia
Othonna
Ozothamnus
Pallenis
Parantennaria
Phacellothrix
Pithocarpa
Pleurocarpaea
Pleuropappus
Pluchea
Podolepis
Podotheca
Pogonolepis
Polycalymma
Polypteris
Pseudognaphalium
Pterocaulon
Pterygopappus
Pycnosorus
Quinetia
Quinqueremulus
Rhodanthe
Roldana
Rutidosis
Schoenia
Scyphocoronis
Sigesbeckia
Siloxerus
Solenogyne
Sphaeranthus
Stemmacantha
Streptoglossa
Stuartina
Syncarpha
Thespidium
Thiseltonia
Tietkensia
Toxanthes
Trichanthodium
Trichocline
Tripleurospermum
Triptilodiscus
Vernonia
Vittadinia
Waitzia
Youngia
Genera with native & exotic species:
†Cotula
†Erigeron
†Gnaphalium
†Picris
†Senecio
†Sonchus
†Taraxacum
†Wedelia
Exotic genera:
*Achillea
*Acroptilon
*Ageratina
*Ageratum
*Ambrosia
*Anacyclus
*Anthemis
*Arctium
*Arctotheca
*Arctotis
*Argyranthemum
*Artemisia
*Aster
*Asteriscus
*Baccharis
*Bellis
*Berkheya
*Bidens
*Achillea
*Acroptilon
*Ageratina
*Ageratum
*Ambrosia
*Anacyclus
*Anthemis
*Arctium
*Arctotheca
*Arctotis
*Argyranthemum
*Artemisia
*Aster
*Asteriscus
*Baccharis
*Bellis
*Berkheya
*Bidens
*Calendula
*Calyptocarpus
*Carduus
*Carpesium
*Centaurea
*Chamaemelum
*Chondrilla
*Chrysanthemoides
*Chrysanthemum
*Cichorium
*Cineraria
*Cirsium
*Cnicus
*Conyza
*Coreopsis
*Cosmos
†Cotula
*Crassocephalum
*Crepis
*Crupina
*Cynara
*Delairea
*Dittrichia
*Echinops
*Emilia
*Erechtites
†Erigeron
*Eriocephalus
*Ethulia
*Euryops
*Evax
*Facelis
*Felicia
*Filago
*Gaillardia
*Galinsoga
*Gamochaeta
*Gazania
†Gnaphalium
*Gorteria
*Grindelia
*Guizotia
*Gymnocoronis
*Hedypnois
*Helenium
*Helianthus
*Helminthotheca
*Hemizonia
*Heterotheca
*Hieracium
*Hypochoeris
Isoetopsis
*Iva
*Lactuca
*Lapsana
*Lasiospermum
*Leontodon
*Leucanthemum
*Logfia
*Madia
*Mantisalca
*Matricaria
*Montanoa
*Notobasis
*Onopordum
*Osteospermum
*Parthenium
*Pentzia
*Petasites
*Picnomon
†Picris
*Podospermum
*Reichardia
*Schkuhria
*Scolymus
*Scorzonera
†Senecio
*Silybum
*Solidago
*Soliva
†Sonchus
*Spilanthes
*Stevia
*Tagetes
*Tanacetum
†Taraxacum
*Tithonia
*Tolpis
*Tragopogon
*Tridax
*Urospermum
*Ursinia
*Vellereophyton
*Verbesina
†Wedelia
*Xanthium
*Zinnia
Source:
Compsticae book on Kindle
2009
Source:
Early evolution of the angiosperm clade Asteraceae in the Cretaceous of Antarctica
Viviana D. Barredaa, Luis Palazzesia,b, Maria C. Telleríac, Eduardo B. Oliverod, J. Ian Rainee, and Félix Forestb
EXAMPLES:
Brachyscome
Chrysocephalum
Helichrysum
Unknown
Olearia
Xerochrysum