Zingiberaceae
From Biodiversity of India
| Taxon level | Family | |
|---|---|---|
| Taxon name | Zingiberaceae | |
| Closely related taxa | Costaceae | Mobot.org |
| Taxon details | Zingiberaceae split off from the genus Costaceae ~79 or ~100 million years ago, based on two estimates (Kress06,Janssen04). The family consists of over 93 genera and over 2000 different species, with the center of diversity in South-East Asia. | Mobot.org,Kress06,Janssen04 |
| Taxon morphology details | Small to large herbaceous plants, distichous leaves with basal sheaths that overlap to form a pseudostem. Plants are either self-supporting or epiphytic. Flowers are hermaphroditic, usually strongly zygomorphic (bilateral symmetry), in determinate cymose inflorescences, with conspicuous, spirally arranged bracts. The perianth is composed of two whorls, a fused tubular calyx, and a tubular corolla with one lobe larger than the other two. Flowers typically have two of their stamenoids (sterile stamens) fused to form a petaloid lip, and have only one fertile stamen. The ovary is inferior and topped by two nectaries, the stigma is funnel-shaped. | Wikipedia |
| Species belonging to this taxon | Alpinia abundiflora, Alpinia allughas (Tara), Alpinia aquatica, Alpinia calcarata (Snap Ginger, Cardamom ginger, Indian ginger), Alpinia roxburghii, Curcuma longa (Common Turmeric), Curcuma zedoaria (White turmeric, Zedoary), Elettaria cardamomum (Cardamom, Green cardamom), Zingiber capitatum (Wild Ginger), Zingiber chrysanthum (Golden flowered ginger), Zingiber officinale (Garden ginger), Zingiber rubens (Bengal Ginger) |
Kress06 (Journal) : Kress, W.J. and C.D. Specht.T (2006),he evolutionary and biogeographic origin and diversification of the tropical monocot order Zingiberales., J. T. Columbus, E. A. Friar, C. W. Hamilton, J. M. Porter, L. M. Prince, and M. G. Simpson [eds] Monocots: comparative biology and evolution.:{{{volume}}}({{{issue}}}):{{{page}}}. doi={{{doi}}}
Janssen04 (Journal) : T Janssen, K Bremer (2004),The age of major monocot groups inferred from 800+rbcL sequences, Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society:146(4):385. doi={{{doi}}}
Mobot.org (Web): Mobot.org entry on Zingiberaceae, Accessdate=2010-10-12
Wikipedia (Web): Wikipedia entry on Zingiberaceae, Accessdate=2010-10-12
