Papaveraceae

A. L. Jussieu
Treatment appears in FNA Volume 3. Treatment on page 300.

Herbs or subshrubs, shrubs, or small trees, annual, biennial, or perennial, scapose or caulescent, usually from taproots, sometimes from rhizomes; sap clear, white, or colored, often sticky. Stems leafy or naked, erect, spreading, or decumbent, simple or branching. Leaves basal and/or cauline, alternate to opposite or whorled, simple, without stipules, petiolate or sessile; blade unlobed or with 1-3 odd-pinnate, subpalmate, or palmate orders of lobes. Inflorescences axillary or terminal, unifloral or else multifloral and cymiform, racemose, umbelliform, corybiform, or paniculate, pedunculate or subsessile; bracts usually present. Flowers radially symmetric, pedicellate or sessile; receptacle sometimes expanded and forming cup or ring beneath calyx (only in Eschscholzia, Meconella, and Platystemon); perianth and androecium sometimes perigynous; sepals caducous, 2 or 3, distinct or connate, usually obovate; petals distinct, usually obovate, mostly 2 times number of sepals, sometimes more or absent; stamens many or 4-15 (only in Meconella and Canbya); anthers 2-locular; pistil 1, 2-18 [-22] -carpellate; ovary 1-2-locular or incompletely to completely multilocular by placental intrusion; placentas 2 or more, parietal; style 1 or absent; stigmas or stigma lobes 2-many. Fruits capsular, dehiscence valvate, poricidal, or transverse, or carpels dissociating and breaking transversely into 1-seeded segments (only in Platystemon). Seeds usually many, small, sometimes arillate or carunculate.

Distribution

Worldwide, mainly Northern Hemisphere

Discussion

Genera 25-30 (17 genera, 63 species in the flora).

According to W. R. Ernst (1962b), Papaveraceae "may be divided conveniently into four subfamilies." His scheme is followed here, but with the subfamilies taken up in alphabetic order; they seem to be natural groups, but their phylogenetic interrelationships are not yet clear. Similarly, the evolutionary relationships within the subfamilies remain ambiguous, and the genera in each are listed alphabetically. Subfamily Chelidonioideae Ernst includes genera 1-5; subf. Eschscholzioideae Ernst, genera 6-7; subf. Papavaroideae Ernst, genera 8-14; and subf. Platostamenoideae Ernst, genera 15-17.

Hunnemannia fumariifolia Sweet, native to the highlands of Mexico, is occasionally found in California as a garden escape. A glabrous perennial with glaucous, blue-gray stem and leaves, and glossy, yellow petals, it bears an overall resemblance to Eschscholzia but has distinct sepals, no receptacular cup, and a peltate stigma. Below, it would key out as Arctomecon.

Selected References

None.

Illustrations

 Family TaxonIllustrator 
FNA03 P55 Chelidonium Glaucium Macleaya pg 303.jpegPapaveraceae
Papaveraceae
Papaveraceae
Macleaya cordata
Glaucium flavum
Chelidonium majus
John Myers
John Myers
John Myers
FNA03 P56 Sanguinaria Stylophorum Dendromecon pg 307.jpegPapaveraceae
Papaveraceae
Papaveraceae
Sanguinaria canadensis
Stylophorum diphyllum
Dendromecon rigida
John Myers
John Myers
John Myers
FNA03 P57 Eschscholzia pg 309.jpegPapaveraceae
Papaveraceae
Papaveraceae
Eschscholzia minutiflora
Eschscholzia californica subsp. californica
Eschscholzia glyptosperma
John Myers
John Myers
John Myers
FNA03 P59 Argemone pg 316.jpegPapaveraceae
Papaveraceae
Papaveraceae
Papaveraceae
Argemone hispida
Argemone mexicana
Argemone ochroleuca
Argemone squarrosa subsp. squarrosa
John Myers
John Myers
John Myers
John Myers
FNA03 P60 Argemone Canbya pg 321.jpegPapaveraceae
Papaveraceae
Papaveraceae
Papaveraceae
Papaveraceae
Canbya candida
Argemone pleiacantha subsp. pleiacantha
Argemone pleiacantha subsp. pinnatisecta
Argemone munita subsp. rotundata
Argemone polyanthemos
John Myers
John Myers
John Myers
John Myers
John Myers
FNA03 P61 Papaver pg 330.jpegPapaveraceae
Papaveraceae
Papaveraceae
Papaveraceae
Papaver radicatum subsp. radicatum
Papaver macounii subsp. discolor
Papaver lapponicum
Papaver mcconnellii
John Myers
John Myers
John Myers
John Myers
FNA03 P62 Papaver pg 333.jpegPapaveraceae
Papaveraceae
Papaveraceae
Papaver rhoeas
Papaver somniferum
Papaver dubium
John Myers
John Myers
John Myers
FNA03 P63 Roemeria Romneya Stylomecon pg 335.jpegPapaveraceae
Papaveraceae
Papaveraceae
Romneya coulteri
Stylomecon heterophylla
Roemeria refracta
John Myers
John Myers
John Myers
FNA03 P64 Hesperomecon Meconella Platystemon pg 338.jpegPapaveraceae
Papaveraceae
Papaveraceae
Platystemon californicus
Hesperomecon linearis
Meconella californica
John Myers
John Myers
John Myers
FNA03 p58 Eschscholzia Arctomecon pg 312.jpegPapaveraceae
Papaveraceae
Papaveraceae
Papaveraceae
Arctomecon californica
Eschscholzia lobbii
Eschscholzia lemmonii subsp. lemmonii
Arctomecon humilis
John Myers
John Myers
John Myers
John Myers

Key

1 Leaves opposite or whorled. > 2
1 Leaves alternate or subopposite (sometimes only 1 in Sanguinaria). > 4
2 Plants glabrous or glabrate; blades of proximal leaves linear-spatulate; stamens 4-12; capsules linear. Meconella
2 Plants usually distinctly pubescent; blades of proximal leaves broadly linear; stamens 12 or more; capsules not linear. > 3
3 Stems branching distally; stigmas and carpels 6 or more, carpels dissociating and breaking transversely into 1-seeded segments. Platystemon
3 Stems branching from base; stigmas and carpels 3, carpels not dissociating, not breaking into transverse segments, capsules valvate. Hesperomecon
4 Plants subshrubby or shrubby. > 5
4 Plants herbaceous. > 7
5 Leaf blades and capsules harshly prickly. Argemone
5 Leaf blades and capsules not harshly prickly, sometimes bristly. > 6
6 Leaf blades lobed; petals white. Romneya
6 Leaf blades unlobed; petals yellow. Dendromecon
7 Sepals connate, calyptrate; evident receptacular cup beneath calyx. Eschscholzia
7 Sepals distinct, not calyptrate; receptacular cup absent or obscure. > 8
8 Inflorescences paniculate; petals absent. Macleaya
8 Inflorescences not paniculate; petals present. > 9
9 Inflorescences umbelliform. > 10
9 Inflorescences not umbelliform. > 11
10 Stigma lobes 2; capsule 2-valved, dehiscing from base, glabrous. Chelidonium
10 Stigma lobes 3-4(-5); capsule (3-)4-valved, dehiscing from apex, pubescent. Stylophorum
11 Leaf blades and capsules harshly prickly. Argemone
11 Leaf blades and capsules not harshly prickly. > 12
12 Stigmas radiating on sessile disc. Papaver
12 Stigmatic disc absent. > 13
13 Style absent or indistinct. > 14
13 Style present. > 17
14 Sap clear; leaf blades unlobed or lobed only distally; petals 5-7. > 15
14 Sap yellow; leaf blades lobed throughout; petals 4. > 16
15 Leaf blades glabrous; inflorescences 1-flowered; stamens 6-15. Canbya
15 Leaf blades long-pilose; inflorescences 3-20-flowered; stamens many. Arctomecon
16 Petals yellow to reddish orange; filaments yellow. Glaucium
16 Petals bright red; filaments dark violet or black. Roemeria
17 Leaf blades palmately lobed throughout. Sanguinaria
17 Leaf blades pinnately lobed throughout or lobed only distally. > 18
18 Leaf blades pinnately lobed throughout; petals orange-red, spotted purple at base, caducous. Stylomecon
18 Leaf blades lobed only distally; petals white or yellow, unspotted, persistent. Arctomecon
... more about "Papaveraceae"
A. L. Jussieu +
palmate +  and subpalmate +
with 1-3 odd-pinnate +  and unlobed +
Worldwide +  and mainly Northern Hemisphere +
sessile +, pedicellate +  and symmetric +
transverse +, poricidal +, valvate +  and dehiscence +
subsessile +, pedunculate +, umbelliform +, cymiform +, multifloral +, else +  and unifloral +
paniculate +  and racemose +
terminal +  and axillary +
sessile +, petiolate +  and simple +
alternate +  and opposite or whorled +
cauline +  and basal +
1-2-locular or +  and incompletely completely multilocular +
distinct +
obovate +
2 times number of sepals +
2-18[-22]-carpellate +
colored +, white +  and clear +
carunculate +  and arillate +
list +  and count +
3 +  and 2 +
obovate +
4 +  and 15 +
branching +, simple +, naked +  and leafy +
decumbent +, spreading +  and erect +
Papaveraceae +
caulescent +  and scapose +
perennial +, biennial +  and annual +
tree +, shrub +, subshrub +  and herb +