''Capsella'' is a genus of herbaceous
annual and
biennial plants in the family
Brassicaceae
Brassicaceae () or (the older but equally valid) Cruciferae () is a medium-sized and economically important Family (biology), family of flowering plants commonly known as the mustards, the crucifers, or the cabbage family. Most are herbaceous pla ...
.
It is a close relative of ''
Arabidopsis
''Arabidopsis'' (rockcress) is a genus in the family Brassicaceae. They are small flowering plants related to cabbage and mustard. This genus is of great interest since it contains thale cress (''Arabidopsis thaliana''), one of the model organ ...
'', ''
Neslia'', and ''
Halimolobos''.
Some authors circumscribe ''Capsella'' to contain only three species: ''
Capsella bursa-pastoris'', ''
Capsella rubella'' and ''
Capsella grandiflora''.
,
Kew
Kew () is a district in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. Its population at the 2011 census was 11,436. Kew is the location of the Royal Botanic Gardens ("Kew Gardens"), now a World Heritage Site, which includes Kew Palace. Kew is ...
's
Plants of the World Online
Plants of the World Online (POWO) is an online taxonomic database published by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
History
Following the Convention on Biological Diversity, the Royal Botanic Gardens in Kew launched Plants of the World Online i ...
list eight species.
''
Capsella rubella'' is a self-fertilizing species that became self-compatible 50,000 to 100,000 years ago. Its outcrossing progenitor was ''Capsella grandiflora''. In general, the shift from outcrossing to self-fertilization is among the most common transitions in flowering plants. ''Capsella rubella'' is studied as a model for understanding the evolution of self-fertilization.
The name is said to derive from Latin ''capsa'', a box or case, alluding to fruit resembling a medieval wallet or purse;
the suffix ''-ella'' denotes "lesser".
Species
Species include:
*''
Capsella bursa-pastoris''
*''
Capsella gracilis'' (sterile hybrid)
*''
Capsella grandiflora''
*''
Capsella lycia''
*''
Capsella mexicana''
*''
Capsella orientalis''
*''
Capsella puberula''
*''
Capsella rubella''
*''
Capsella tasmanica''
References
{{Authority control
Brassicaceae genera