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Wikipedia / Aizoaceae

The Aizoaceae (), or fig-marigold family, are a large family of dicotyledonous flowering plants containing 135 genera and about 1,800 species. Several genera are commonly named ice plants or carpet weeds. The Aizoaceae are also referred to as vygies in South Africa. Some of the unusual Southern African genera—such as Conophytum, Lithops, Titanopsis, and Pleiospilos (among others)—resemble gemstones, rocks, or pebbles, and are sometimes called living stones or mesembs (short for mesembryanthemums).

Description

The family Aizoaceae is widely recognised by taxonomists. It once went by the botanical name "Ficoidaceae", now disallowed. The APG II system of 2003 (unchanged from the APG system of 1998) also recognizes the family, and assigns it to the order Caryophyllales in the clade core eudicots. The APG II system also classes the former families Mesembryanthemaceae Fenzl, Sesuviaceae Horan. and Tetragoniaceae Link under the family Aizoaceae.

The common Afrikaans name "vygie" meaning "small fig" refers to the fruiting capsule, which resembles the true fig. Glistening epidermal bladder cells give the family its common name "ice plants".

Most fig-marigolds are herbaceous, rarely somewhat woody, with sympodial growth and stems either erect or prostrate. Leaves are simple, opposite or alternate, and more or less succulent with entire (or rarely toothed) margins. Flowers are perfect in most species (but unisexual in some), actinomorphic, and appear singularly or in few-flowered cymes developing from the leaf axils. Sepals are typically five (3–8) and more or less connate (fused) below. True petals are absent. However, some species have numerous linear petals derived from staminodes. The seed capsules have one to numerous seeds per cell and are often hygrochastic, dispersing seeds by "jet action" when wet.

Distribution

Most species (96%, 1782 species in 132 genera) in this family are endemic to arid or semiarid parts of Southern Africa in the Succulent Karoo. Much of the Aizoaceae's diversity is found in the Greater Cape Floristic Region, which is the most plant-diverse temperate region in the world. A few species are found in Australia and the Central Pacific area.

Carpobrotus is found as an introduced species on the western coast of the United States, New Zealand, the Mediterranean coast of Europe and the southern coast of Brazil.

Evolution

The radiation of the Aizoaceae, specifically the subfamily Ruschioideae, was one of the most recent among the angiosperms, occurring 1.13–6.49 million years ago. It is also one of the fastest radiations ever described in the angiosperms, with a diversification rate of about 4.4 species per million years. This diversification was roughly contemporaneous with major radiations in two other succulent lineages, Cactaceae and Agave.

The family includes many species that use crassulacean acid metabolism as pathway for carbon fixation. Some species in the subfamily Sesuvioideae instead use carbon fixation, which might have evolved multiple times in the group.

Taxonomy

Because of the hyperdiversity of the Aizoaceae and the young age of the clade, many generic and species boundaries are uncertain.

Subfamily Acrosanthoideae

Genera:

Subfamily Aizooideae

Genera:

Subfamily Mesembryanthemoideae

Genera:

  • Aptenia N.E.Br, synonym of Mesembryanthemum

  • Aridaria N.E.Br, synonym of Mesembryanthemum

  • Aspazoma N.E.Br, synonym of Mesembryanthemum

  • Brownanthus Schwantes, synonym of Mesembryanthemum

  • Dactylopsis N.E.Br, synonym of Mesembryanthemum

  • Mesembryanthemum L.

  • Phyllobolus N.E.Br, synonym of Mesembryanthemum

  • Prenia N.E.Br, synonym of Mesembryanthemum

  • Psilocaulon N.E.Br, synonym of Mesembryanthemum

  • Synaptophyllum N.E.Br, synonym of Mesembryanthemum

Subfamily Ruschioideae

Genera:

  1. Tribe Ruschieae

  2. Acrodon N.E.Br

  3. Aloinopsis Schwantes

  4. Amphibolia L.Bolus ex A.G.J.Herre

  5. Antegibbaeum Schwantes ex C.Weber

  6. Antimima N.E.Br

  7. Arenifera Herre, synonym of Mesembryanthemum

  8. Argyroderma N.E.Br

  9. Astridia Dinter

  10. Bergeranthus Schwantes

  11. Bijlia N.E.Br, synonym of Pleiospilos

  12. Braunsia Schwantes

  13. Brianhuntleya Chess. et al.

  14. Carpobrotus N.E.Br

  15. × Carruanthophyllum (Carruanthus × Machairophyllum)

  16. Carruanthus (Schwantes) Schwantes

  17. Cephalophyllum N.E.Br

  18. Cerochlamys N.E.Br

  19. Chasmatophyllum Dinter & Schwantes

  20. Cheiridopsis N.E.Br

  21. Circandra N.E.Br, synonym of Erepsia

  22. Conophytum N.E.Br

  23. Corpuscularia Schwantes, synonym of Delosperma

  24. Cylindrophyllum Schwantes

  25. Delosperma N.E.Br

  26. Dicrocaulon N.E.Br

  27. Didymaotus N.E.Br

  28. Dinteranthus Schwantes

  29. Diplosoma Schwantes

  30. Disphyma N.E.Br

  31. Dracophilus (Schwantes) Dinter & Schwantes

  32. Drosanthemum Schwantes

  33. Eberlanzia Schwantes

  34. Ebracteola Dinter & Schwantes

  35. Ectotropis N.E.Br, synonym of Delosperma

  36. Enarganthe N.E.Br

  37. Erepsia N.E.Br

  38. Esterhuysenia L.Bolus, synonym of Lampranthus

  39. Faucaria Schwantes

  40. Fenestraria N.E.Br

  41. Frithia N.E.Br

  42. Gibbaeum Haw. ex N.E.Br

  43. Glottiphyllum Haw. ex N.E.Br

  44. Hallianthus H.E.K.Hartmann

  45. Hereroa (Schwantes) Dinter & Schwantes

  46. Ihlenfeldtia H.E.K.Hartmann, synonym of Cheiridopsis

  47. Imitaria N.E.Br, synonym of Gibbaeum

  48. Jacobsenia L.Bolus & Schwantes

  49. Jensenobotrya A.G.J.Herre

  50. Jordaaniella H.E.K.Hartmann

  51. Juttadinteria Schwantes

  52. Khadia N.E.Br

  53. Lampranthus N.E.Br

  54. Lapidaria (Dinter & Schwantes) N.E.Br.

  55. Leipoldtia L.Bolus

  56. Lemonanthemum Klak

  57. Lithops N.E.Br

  58. Machairophyllum Schwantes

  59. Malephora N.E.Br

  60. Malephoropsis

  61. Malotigena Niederle

  62. Marlothistella Schwantes

  63. Mestoklema N.E.Br. ex Glen

  64. Meyerophytum Schwantes

  65. Mitrophyllum Schwantes

  66. Monilaria (Schwantes) Schwantes

  67. Mossia N.E.Br

  68. Muiria N.E.Br

  69. Namaquanthus L.Bolus

  70. Namibia (Schwantes) Schwantes

  71. Nananthus N.E.Br

  72. Nelia Schwantes

  73. Neohenricia L.Bolus

  74. Octopoma N.E.Br

  75. Odontophorus N.E.Br, synonym of Cheiridopsis

  76. Oophytum N.E.Br

  77. Orthopterum L.Bolus

  78. Oscularia Schwantes

  79. Ottosonderia L.Bolus

  80. Phiambolia Klak

  81. Pleiospilos N.E.Br

  82. Polymita N.E.Br, synonym of Schlechteranthus

  83. Psammophora Dinter & Schwantes

  84. Rabiea N.E.Br

  85. Rhinephyllum N.E.Br

  86. Rhombophyllum (Schwantes) Schwantes

  87. Roosia van Jaarsv., synonym of Lampranthus

  88. Ruschia Schwantes

  89. Ruschianthemum Friedrich, synonym of Stoeberia

  90. Ruschianthus L.Bolus

  91. Sarcozona J.M.Black

  92. Schlechteranthus Schwantes

  93. Schwantesia Dinter

  94. Scopelogena L.Bolus

  95. Sederbergia

  96. Smicrostigma N.E.Br

  97. Stayneria L.Bolus

  98. Stoeberia Dinter & Schwantes

  99. Stomatium Schwantes

  100. Tanquana H.E.K.Hartmann & Liede

  101. Titanopsis Schwantes

  102. Trichodiadema Schwantes

  103. Vanheerdea L.Bolus ex H.E.K.Hartmann

  104. Vanzijlia L.Bolus

  105. Vlokia S.A.Hammer

  106. Wooleya L.Bolus

  107. Zeuktophyllum N.E.Br

Subfamily Sesuvioideae

This subfamily includes a number of species.

Genera:

  1. Tribe Anisostigmateae

  2. Anisostigma Schinz

  3. Tribulocarpus S.Moore

  4. Tribe Sesuvieae

  5. Sesuvium L.

  6. Trianthema L.

  7. Zaleya Burm.f.

Unplaced genera

Include;

Uses

Several genera are cultivated. Lithops, or "living stones", are popular as novelty house plants because of their stone-like appearance.

Some species are edible, including:

C. edulis was introduced to California in the early 1900s to stabilize soil along railroad tracks and has become invasive. In southern California, ice plants are sometimes used as firewalls; however, they do burn if not carefully maintained.

References

Further reading