Rosaceae (), the rose family, is a medium-sized
family
Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...
of
flowering plant
Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants t ...
s that includes 4,828 known species in 91
genera.
The name is derived from the
type genus ''
Rosa
Rosa or De Rosa may refer to:
People
*Rosa (given name)
* Rosa (surname)
*Santa Rosa (female given name from Latin-a latinized variant of Rose)
Places
*223 Rosa, an asteroid
* Rosa, Alabama, a town, United States
* Rosa, Germany, in Thuringia, ...
''. Among the most species-rich genera are ''
Alchemilla'' (270), ''
Sorbus
''Sorbus'' is a genus of over 100 species of trees and shrubs in the rose family, Rosaceae. Species of ''Sorbus'' (''s.l.'') are commonly known as whitebeam, rowan ( mountain-ash) and service tree. The exact number of species is disputed depe ...
'' (260), ''
Crataegus'' (260), ''
Cotoneaster'' (260), ''
Rubus
''Rubus'' is a large and diverse genus of flowering plants in the rose family, Rosaceae, subfamily Rosoideae, with over 1,350 species.
Raspberries, blackberries, and dewberries are common, widely distributed members of the genus. Most of the ...
'' (250),
and ''
Prunus
''Prunus'' is a genus of trees and shrubs, which includes (among many others) the fruits plums, cherries, peaches, nectarines, apricots, and almonds.
Native to the North American temperate regions, the neotropics of South America, and the ...
'' (200), which contains the
plum
A plum is a fruit of some species in ''Prunus'' subg. ''Prunus'.'' Dried plums are called prunes.
History
Plums may have been one of the first fruits domesticated by humans. Three of the most abundantly cultivated species are not found ...
s,
cherries,
peach
The peach (''Prunus persica'') is a deciduous tree first domesticated and cultivated in Zhejiang province of Eastern China. It bears edible juicy fruits with various characteristics, most called peaches and others (the glossy-skinned, n ...
es,
apricot
An apricot (, ) is a fruit, or the tree that bears the fruit, of several species in the genus '' Prunus''.
Usually, an apricot is from the species '' P. armeniaca'', but the fruits of the other species in ''Prunus'' sect. ''Armeniaca'' are al ...
s, and
almond
The almond (''Prunus amygdalus'', syn. ''Prunus dulcis'') is a species of tree native to Iran and surrounding countries, including the Levant. The almond is also the name of the edible and widely cultivated seed of this tree. Within the genu ...
s. However, all of these numbers should be seen as estimates—much taxonomic work remains.
The family Rosaceae includes herbs, shrubs, and trees. Most species are
deciduous
In the fields of horticulture and Botany, the term ''deciduous'' () means "falling off at maturity" and "tending to fall off", in reference to trees and shrubs that seasonally shed leaves, usually in the autumn; to the shedding of petals, ...
, but some are
evergreen
In botany, an evergreen is a plant which has foliage that remains green and functional through more than one growing season. This also pertains to plants that retain their foliage only in warm climates, and contrasts with deciduous plants, whic ...
.
They have a worldwide range but are most diverse in the
Northern Hemisphere
The Northern Hemisphere is the half of Earth that is north of the Equator. For other planets in the Solar System, north is defined as being in the same celestial hemisphere relative to the invariable plane of the solar system as Earth's Nort ...
.
Many economically important products come from the Rosaceae, including various edible fruits, such as
apple
An apple is an edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus domestica''). Apple trees are cultivated worldwide and are the most widely grown species in the genus '' Malus''. The tree originated in Central Asia, where its wild ancest ...
s,
pear
Pears are fruits produced and consumed around the world, growing on a tree and harvested in the Northern Hemisphere in late summer into October. The pear tree and shrub are a species of genus ''Pyrus'' , in the Family (biology), family Rosacea ...
s,
quinces, apricots, plums, cherries, peaches,
raspberries,
blackberries,
loquats,
strawberries
The garden strawberry (or simply strawberry; ''Fragaria × ananassa'') is a widely grown hybrid species of the genus '' Fragaria'', collectively known as the strawberries, which are cultivated worldwide for their fruit. The fruit is widely ap ...
,
rose hips,
hawthorns, and almonds. The family also includes popular ornamental trees and shrubs, such as
rose
A rose is either a woody perennial flowering plant of the genus ''Rosa'' (), in the family Rosaceae (), or the flower it bears. There are over three hundred species and tens of thousands of cultivars. They form a group of plants that can be ...
s,
meadowsweets,
rowans,
firethorn
''Pyracantha'' (from Greek "fire" and "thorn", hence firethorn) is a genus of large, thorny evergreen shrubs in the family (biology), family Rosaceae, with common names firethorn or pyracantha. They are native to an area extending from Southwe ...
s, and
photinias.
Description
Rosaceae can be woody trees, shrubs, climbers or herbaceous plants.
The herbs are mostly perennials, but some annuals also exist.
Leaves
The
leaves are generally arranged
spirally, but have an opposite arrangement in some species. They can be simple or
pinnately
Pinnation (also called pennation) is the arrangement of feather-like or multi-divided features arising from both sides of a common axis. Pinnation occurs in biological morphology, in crystals, such as some forms of ice or metal crystals, and in ...
compound (either odd- or even-pinnate). Compound leaves appear in around 30 genera. The leaf margin is most often serrate. Paired
stipules are generally present, and are a primitive feature within the family, independently lost in many groups of Amygdaloideae (previously called Spiraeoideae).
The stipules are sometimes adnate (attached surface to surface)
to the
petiole. Glands or
extrafloral nectaries
Nectar is a sugar-rich liquid produced by plants in glands called nectaries or nectarines, either within the flowers with which it attracts pollinating animals, or by extrafloral nectaries, which provide a nutrient source to animal mutualis ...
may be present on leaf margins or petioles. Spines may be present on the midrib of leaflets and the rachis of compound leaves.
Flowers
Flowers of plants in the rose family are generally described as "showy".
They are
radially symmetrical, and almost always hermaphroditic. Rosaceae generally have five
sepal
A sepal () is a part of the flower of angiosperms (flowering plants). Usually green, sepals typically function as protection for the flower in bud, and often as support for the petals when in bloom., p. 106 The term ''sepalum'' was coine ...
s,
five petals, and many spirally arranged
stamen
The stamen (plural ''stamina'' or ''stamens'') is the pollen-producing reproductive organ of a flower. Collectively the stamens form the androecium., p. 10
Morphology and terminology
A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the fila ...
s. The bases of the sepals, petals, and stamens are fused together to form a characteristic cup-like structure called a
hypanthium
In angiosperms, a hypanthium or floral cup is a structure where basal portions of the calyx, the corolla, and the stamens form a cup-shaped tube. It is sometimes called a floral tube, a term that is also used for corolla tube and calyx tube. It ...
. They can be arranged in
spikes, or
heads
A head is the part of an organism which usually includes the ears, brain, forehead, cheeks, chin, eyes, nose, and mouth, each of which aid in various sensory functions such as sight, hearing, smell, and taste. Some very simple animals m ...
. Solitary flowers are rare. Rosaceae have a variety of color petals, but blue is almost completely absent.
Fruits and seeds
The
fruit
In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering.
Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in partic ...
s occur in many varieties and were once considered the main characters for the definition of subfamilies amongst Rosaceae, giving rise to a fundamentally artificial subdivision. They can be
follicles,
capsules,
nuts,
achene
An achene (; ), also sometimes called akene and occasionally achenium or achenocarp, is a type of simple dry fruit produced by many species of flowering plants. Achenes are monocarpellate (formed from one carpel) and indehiscent (they do not o ...
s,
drupes (''
Prunus
''Prunus'' is a genus of trees and shrubs, which includes (among many others) the fruits plums, cherries, peaches, nectarines, apricots, and almonds.
Native to the North American temperate regions, the neotropics of South America, and the ...
''), and
accessory fruits, like the
pome of an apple, or the
hip of a
rose
A rose is either a woody perennial flowering plant of the genus ''Rosa'' (), in the family Rosaceae (), or the flower it bears. There are over three hundred species and tens of thousands of cultivars. They form a group of plants that can be ...
. Many fruits of the family are edible, but their seeds often contain
amygdalin, which can release
cyanide
Cyanide is a naturally occurring, rapidly acting, toxic chemical that can exist in many different forms.
In chemistry, a cyanide () is a chemical compound that contains a functional group. This group, known as the cyano group, consists of ...
during digestion if the seed is damaged.
[TOXNET]
''CASRN: 29883-15-6''
/ref>
Taxonomy
Taxonomic history
The family was traditionally divided into six subfamilies: Rosoideae, Spiraeoideae
The subfamily Spiraeoideae was traditionally a subfamily of flowering plants within the family Rosaceae. The taxonomy of this subfamily has changed several times in the last century as more detailed studies have been carried out. Spiraeoideae as d ...
, Maloideae (Pomoideae), Amygdaloideae (Prunoideae), Neuradoideae, and Chrysobalanoideae, and most of these were treated as families by various authors. More recently (1971), Chrysobalanoideae was placed in Malpighiales in molecular analyses and Neuradoideae has been assigned to Malvales. Schulze-Menz, in Engler's Syllabus edited by Melchior (1964) recognized Rosoideae, Dryadoideae, Lyonothamnoideae, Spireoideae, Amygdaloideae, and Maloideae. They were primarily diagnosed by the structure of the fruits. More recent work has identified that not all of these groups were monophyletic. Hutchinson (1964) and Kalkman (2004) recognized only tribes (17 and 21, respectively). Takhtajan (1997) delimited 21 tribes in 10 subfamilies:Sorbus
''Sorbus'' is a genus of over 100 species of trees and shrubs in the rose family, Rosaceae. Species of ''Sorbus'' (''s.l.'') are commonly known as whitebeam, rowan ( mountain-ash) and service tree. The exact number of species is disputed depe ...
s.l.''. Compounding the problem is that apomixis is common in several genera. This results in an uncertainty in the number of species contained in each of these genera, due to the difficulty of dividing apomictic complexes into species. For example, '' Cotoneaster'' contains between 70 and 300 species, ''Rosa
Rosa or De Rosa may refer to:
People
*Rosa (given name)
* Rosa (surname)
*Santa Rosa (female given name from Latin-a latinized variant of Rose)
Places
*223 Rosa, an asteroid
* Rosa, Alabama, a town, United States
* Rosa, Germany, in Thuringia, ...
'' around 100 (including the taxonomically complex dog roses), ''Sorbus
''Sorbus'' is a genus of over 100 species of trees and shrubs in the rose family, Rosaceae. Species of ''Sorbus'' (''s.l.'') are commonly known as whitebeam, rowan ( mountain-ash) and service tree. The exact number of species is disputed depe ...
'' 100 to 200 species, '' Crataegus'' between 200 and 1,000, '' Alchemilla'' around 300 species, '' Potentilla'' roughly 500, and ''Rubus
''Rubus'' is a large and diverse genus of flowering plants in the rose family, Rosaceae, subfamily Rosoideae, with over 1,350 species.
Raspberries, blackberries, and dewberries are common, widely distributed members of the genus. Most of the ...
'' hundreds, or possibly even thousands of species.
Genera
Identified clades include:
* Subfamily Rosoideae: Traditionally composed of those genera bearing aggregate fruits that are made up of small achenes or drupelets, and often the fleshy part of the fruit (e.g. strawberry
The garden strawberry (or simply strawberry; ''Fragaria × ananassa'') is a widely grown hybrid species of the genus '' Fragaria'', collectively known as the strawberries, which are cultivated worldwide for their fruit. The fruit is widely ap ...
) is the receptacle or the stalk bearing the carpels. The circumscription is now narrowed (excluding, for example, the Dryadoideae), but it still remains a diverse group containing five or six tribes and 20 or more genera, including rose, ''Rubus
''Rubus'' is a large and diverse genus of flowering plants in the rose family, Rosaceae, subfamily Rosoideae, with over 1,350 species.
Raspberries, blackberries, and dewberries are common, widely distributed members of the genus. Most of the ...
'' (blackberry, raspberry), '' Fragaria'' (strawberry), '' Potentilla'', and '' Geum''.
* Subfamily Amygdaloideae: Within this group remains an identified clade with a pome fruit, traditionally known as subfamily Maloideae (or Pyroideae) which included genera such as apple, '' Cotoneaster'', and '' Crataegus'' (hawthorn). To separate it at the subfamily level would leave the remaining genera as a paraphyletic
In taxonomy, a group is paraphyletic if it consists of the group's last common ancestor and most of its descendants, excluding a few monophyletic subgroups. The group is said to be paraphyletic ''with respect to'' the excluded subgroups. In ...
group, so it has been expanded to include the former Spiraeoideae and Amygdaloideae.Chamaebatia
''Chamaebatia'', also known as mountain misery, is a genus of two species of aromatic evergreen shrubs endemic to California. Its English common name derives from early settlers' experience with the plant's dense tangle and sticky, strong-sme ...
'', '' Cowania'', and '' Purshia''), most species of which form root nodules which host nitrogen-fixing bacteria from the genus '' Frankia''.
Phylogeny
The phylogenetic relationships between the three subfamilies within Rosaceae are unresolved. There are three competing hypotheses:
Amygdaloideae basal
Amygdaloideae has been identified as the earliest branching subfamily by Chin ''et al''. (2014), Li ''et al''. (2015), Li ''et al''. (2016), and Sun ''et al''. (2016). Most recently Zhang ''et al''. (2017) recovered these relationships using whole plastid genomes:hypanthium
In angiosperms, a hypanthium or floral cup is a structure where basal portions of the calyx, the corolla, and the stamens form a cup-shaped tube. It is sometimes called a floral tube, a term that is also used for corolla tube and calyx tube. It ...
from the ovary
The ovary is an organ in the female reproductive system that produces an ovum. When released, this travels down the fallopian tube into the uterus, where it may become fertilized by a sperm. There is an ovary () found on each side of the body. ...
, and the fruits are usually achenes.
Dryadoideae basal
Dryadoideae has been identified as the earliest branching subfamily by Evans ''et al''. (2002) and Potter (2003). Most recently Xiang ''et al''. (2017) recovered these relationships using nuclear
Nuclear may refer to:
Physics
Relating to the nucleus of the atom:
*Nuclear engineering
*Nuclear physics
*Nuclear power
*Nuclear reactor
*Nuclear weapon
*Nuclear medicine
*Radiation therapy
*Nuclear warfare
Mathematics
*Nuclear space
*Nuclear ...
transcriptomes:
Rosoideae basal
Rosoideae has been identified as the earliest branching subfamily by Morgan ''et al''. (1994), Evans (1999), Potter ''et al''. (2002), Potter ''et al''. (2007),sorbitol
Sorbitol (), less commonly known as glucitol (), is a sugar alcohol with a sweet taste which the human body metabolizes slowly. It can be obtained by reduction of glucose, which changes the converted aldehyde group (−CHO) to a primary alcoho ...
.
Distribution and habitat
The Rosaceae have a cosmopolitan distribution, being found nearly everywhere except for Antarctica. They are primarily concentrated in the Northern Hemisphere in regions that are not desert or tropical rainforest.
Uses
The rose family is considered one of the six most economically important crop plant families,[B.C. Bennett (undated). ''Economic Botany: Twenty-Five Economically Important Plant Families'']
Encyclopedia of Life Support Systems (EOLSS) e-book
/ref> and includes apple
An apple is an edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus domestica''). Apple trees are cultivated worldwide and are the most widely grown species in the genus '' Malus''. The tree originated in Central Asia, where its wild ancest ...
s, pear
Pears are fruits produced and consumed around the world, growing on a tree and harvested in the Northern Hemisphere in late summer into October. The pear tree and shrub are a species of genus ''Pyrus'' , in the Family (biology), family Rosacea ...
s, quinces, medlars, loquats, almond
The almond (''Prunus amygdalus'', syn. ''Prunus dulcis'') is a species of tree native to Iran and surrounding countries, including the Levant. The almond is also the name of the edible and widely cultivated seed of this tree. Within the genu ...
s, peach
The peach (''Prunus persica'') is a deciduous tree first domesticated and cultivated in Zhejiang province of Eastern China. It bears edible juicy fruits with various characteristics, most called peaches and others (the glossy-skinned, n ...
es, apricot
An apricot (, ) is a fruit, or the tree that bears the fruit, of several species in the genus '' Prunus''.
Usually, an apricot is from the species '' P. armeniaca'', but the fruits of the other species in ''Prunus'' sect. ''Armeniaca'' are al ...
s, plum
A plum is a fruit of some species in ''Prunus'' subg. ''Prunus'.'' Dried plums are called prunes.
History
Plums may have been one of the first fruits domesticated by humans. Three of the most abundantly cultivated species are not found ...
s, cherries, strawberries
The garden strawberry (or simply strawberry; ''Fragaria × ananassa'') is a widely grown hybrid species of the genus '' Fragaria'', collectively known as the strawberries, which are cultivated worldwide for their fruit. The fruit is widely ap ...
, blackberries, raspberries, sloes, and rose
A rose is either a woody perennial flowering plant of the genus ''Rosa'' (), in the family Rosaceae (), or the flower it bears. There are over three hundred species and tens of thousands of cultivars. They form a group of plants that can be ...
s.
Many genera are also highly valued ornamental plants. These include trees and shrubs ('' Cotoneaster'', ''Chaenomeles
''Chaenomeles'' is a genus of four species https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:331479-2 of deciduous spiny shrubs, usually 1–3 m tall, in the family Rosaceae. They are native to Southeast Asia. These plants are rela ...
'', '' Crataegus'', '' Dasiphora'', '' Exochorda'', '' Kerria'', '' Photinia'', ''Physocarpus
''Physocarpus'', commonly called ninebark, is a genus of flowering plants in the family Rosaceae, native to North America (most species) and northeastern Asia (one species).
Description
''Physocarpus'' are deciduous shrubs with peeling bark '', ''Prunus
''Prunus'' is a genus of trees and shrubs, which includes (among many others) the fruits plums, cherries, peaches, nectarines, apricots, and almonds.
Native to the North American temperate regions, the neotropics of South America, and the ...
'', '' Pyracantha'', '' Rhodotypos'', ''Rosa
Rosa or De Rosa may refer to:
People
*Rosa (given name)
* Rosa (surname)
*Santa Rosa (female given name from Latin-a latinized variant of Rose)
Places
*223 Rosa, an asteroid
* Rosa, Alabama, a town, United States
* Rosa, Germany, in Thuringia, ...
'', ''Sorbus
''Sorbus'' is a genus of over 100 species of trees and shrubs in the rose family, Rosaceae. Species of ''Sorbus'' (''s.l.'') are commonly known as whitebeam, rowan ( mountain-ash) and service tree. The exact number of species is disputed depe ...
'', '' Spiraea''), herbaceous perennials ('' Alchemilla'', '' Aruncus'', '' Filipendula'', '' Geum'', '' Potentilla'', '' Sanguisorba''), alpine plants ('' Dryas'', ''Geum'', ''Potentilla'') and climbers (''Rosa
Rosa or De Rosa may refer to:
People
*Rosa (given name)
* Rosa (surname)
*Santa Rosa (female given name from Latin-a latinized variant of Rose)
Places
*223 Rosa, an asteroid
* Rosa, Alabama, a town, United States
* Rosa, Germany, in Thuringia, ...
'').Rosa damascena
Rosa or De Rosa may refer to:
People
*Rosa (given name)
* Rosa (surname)
* Santa Rosa (female given name from Latin-a latinized variant of Rose)
Places
* 223 Rosa, an asteroid
* Rosa, Alabama, a town, United States
* Rosa, Germany, in Thuringia ...
'', '' Rosa gallica'', and other species is an important economic industry.
Gallery
The family Rosaceae covers a wide range of trees, bushes and plants.
File:Acaena magellanica magellanica 1.jpg , Buzzy burr (''Acaena magellanica'')
File:Alchemilla vulgaris.jpg , Common lady's mantle (''Alchemilla vulgaris'')
File:Aruncus dioicus 15105.JPG , Goat's beard (''Aruncus dioicus'')
File:Chaenomeles japonica a1.jpg , Maule's quince (''Chaenomeles japonica'')
File:Cercocarpus betuloides blancheae.JPG , mountain mahogany (''Cercocarpus betuloides'')
File:Crataegus monogyna 004.JPG , Common hawthorn (''Crataegus monogyna'')
File:Cotoneaster adpressus GotBot 2015 001.jpg , Creeping cotoneaster (''Cotoneaster adpressus'')
File:Dasiphora fruticosa 5698.jpg , Shrubby cinquefoil (''Dasiphora fruticosa'')
File:Mountainavens2.jpg , Mountain avens ('' Dryas octopetala'')
File:Eriobotrya japonica B.jpg , Loquat (''Eriobotrya japonica''), a fruit tree typical by flowering in autumn
File:Exochorda racemosa1.jpg , Pearlbush (''Exochorda racemosa'')
(MHNT) Filipendula vulgaris - Inflorescence.jpg, Dropwort (''Filipendula vulgaris'')
File:FragariaMoschata.JPG , Musk strawberry (''Fragaria moschata'') valued for its intense aroma
File:Geum triflorum 4881.JPG , Old man's whiskers (''Geum triflorum'')
File:Kerria japonica 2.JPG , ''Kerria japonica''
File:Apple blossoms.jpg , Apple tree blossoms (''Malus pumila'')
File:Mispel-Crataegus-germanica-001.jpg , Common medlar (''Mespilus germanica'')
File:Photinia fraseri B.JPG , Red Tip Photinia (''Photinia x fraseri'') popular for red color of its new growths
File:Physocarpus opulifolius USFWS.jpg , Common ninebark (''Physocarpus opulifolius'')
File:Potentilla reptans sl8.jpg , Creeping cinquefoil (''Potentilla reptans'')
File:PikiWiki Israel 7025 Amond blossom.jpg , Mature fruit of an almond tree (''Prunus dulcis'')
File:PRUNUS SPINOSA - SANT JUST - IB-481 (Aranyoner).JPG , Blackthorn (''Prunus spinosa'')
File:Purshia stansburiana 2.jpg , Stansbury's cliffrose (''Purshia stansburyana'')
File:Brosen pyracantha coccinea1.jpg , Scarlet firethorn (''Pyracantha Coccinea'')
File:Pear-tree,katori-city,japan.JPG , Nashi pear (''Pyrus pyrifolia'') typical for Asian countries
File:Rhodotypos-scandens-fruit.JPG , ''Rhodotypos scandens'', a Japanese shrub with fruits high in toxic amygdalin
File:Rosa sericea jd plt 1.jpg , The silky rose (''Rosa sericea'') known for its ornamental prickles
File:Rubus spectabilis 39139.JPG , Salmonberry (''Rubus spectabilis'')
File:Toten 2.jpg , Great burnet (''Sanguisorba officinalis'')
File:Sorbus alnifolia 'Submollis' JPG1La.jpg , Autumn foliage of the Korean mountain ash (''Sorbus alnifolia'')
File:Spiraea splendens 21648.JPG , Rose meadowsweet (''Spiraea splendens'')
References
External links
Rosaceae at the DELTA Online Families of Flowering Plants
{{Authority control
Rosales
Rosid families
Extant Cretaceous first appearances