The

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

''Fagopyrum'' is in the flowering plant family

Polygonaceae The Polygonaceae are a Family (biology), family of flowering plants known Common name, informally as the knotweed family or smartweed—buckwheat family in the United States. The Botanical name, name is Basionym, based on the genus ''Polygonum'', ...

. It includes some important food plants, such as '' F. esculentum'' (buckwheat) and '' F. tataricum'' (Tartary buckwheat). The genus is native to the

Indian subcontinent The Indian subcontinent is a physiographic region of Asia below the Himalayas which projects into the Indian Ocean between the Bay of Bengal to the east and the Arabian Sea to the west. It is now divided between Bangladesh, India, and Pakista ...

, much of

Indochina Mainland Southeast Asia (historically known as Indochina and the Indochinese Peninsula) is the continental portion of Southeast Asia. It lies east of the Indian subcontinent and south of Mainland China and is bordered by the Indian Ocean to th ...

, and central and southeastern China. Species have been widely introduced elsewhere, throughout the

Holarctic The Holarctic realm is a biogeographic realm that comprises the majority of habitats found throughout the continents in the Northern Hemisphere. It corresponds to the floristic Boreal Kingdom. It includes both the Nearctic zoogeographical reg ...

and parts of Africa and South America.

Description

''Fagopyrum'' contains 15 to 16 species of plants, including two important

crop A crop is a plant that can be grown and harvested extensively for profit or subsistence. In other words, a crop is a plant or plant product that is grown for a specific purpose such as food, Fiber, fibre, or fuel. When plants of the same spe ...

plants,

buckwheat Buckwheat (''Fagopyrum esculentum'') or common buckwheat is a flowering plant in the knotweed family Polygonaceae cultivated for its grain-like seeds and as a cover crop. Buckwheat originated around the 6th millennium BCE in the region of what ...

(''Fagopyrum esculentum''), and ''

Fagopyrum tataricum ''Fagopyrum tataricum'', also known as Tartary buckwheat, green buckwheat, ku qiao, Tatar buckwheat, or bitter buckwheat, is a domesticated food plant in the genus '' Fagopyrum'' in the family Polygonaceae. With another species in the same genus ...

'' (Tartary buckwheat). The two have similar uses, and are classed as

pseudocereal A pseudocereal or pseudograin is one of any non-grasses that are used in much the same way as cereals (true cereals are grasses). Pseudocereals can be further distinguished from other non-cereal staple crops (such as potatoes) by their being pr ...

s, because they are used in the same way as cereals but do not belong to the grass family

Poaceae Poaceae ( ), also called Gramineae ( ), is a large and nearly ubiquitous family of monocotyledonous flowering plants commonly known as grasses. It includes the cereal grasses, bamboos, the grasses of natural grassland and species cultivate ...

. Within ''Fagopyrum'', the cultivated species are in the Cymosum group, including ''Fagopyrum cymosum'' or perennial buckwheat, the artificial hybrid ''Fagopyrum'' × ''giganteum'', and ''Fagopyrum homotropicum''. This genus has five-petaled flowers arranged in a compound

raceme A raceme () or racemoid is an unbranched, indeterminate growth, indeterminate type of inflorescence bearing flowers having short floral stalks along the shoots that bear the flowers. The oldest flowers grow close to the base and new flowers are ...

that produces laterally flowered cymose clusters.

Taxonomy

The genus ''Fagopyrum'' was first published by

Philip Miller Philip Miller Royal Society, FRS (1691 – 18 December 1771) was an English botany, botanist and gardener of Scottish descent. Miller was chief gardener at the Chelsea Physic Garden for nearly 50 years from 1722, and wrote the highly popular ...

in 1754. It is placed in the tribe Fagopyreae (as the only genus) in the subfamily

Polygonoideae Polygonoideae is a subfamily of plants in the family Polygonaceae. It includes a number of plants that can be highly invasive, such as Japanese knotweed, '' Reynoutria japonica'', and its hybrid with '' R. sachalinensis'', ''R.'' × ''bohemica' ...

Species

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 ...

accepted the following species: *''

Fagopyrum callianthum The genus ''Fagopyrum'' is in the flowering plant family Polygonaceae. It includes some important food plants, such as '' F. esculentum'' (buckwheat) and '' F. tataricum'' (Tartary buckwheat). The genus is native to the Indian subcontin ...

'' Ohnishi *'' Fagopyrum capillatum'' Ohnishi *'' Fagopyrum caudatum'' (Sam.) A.J.Li *'' Fagopyrum crispatifolium'' J.L.Liu *''

Fagopyrum cymosum ''Fagopyrum cymosum'', also known as tall buckwheat, is a domesticated plant used in traditional Chinese medicine Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is an alternative medicine, alternative medical practice drawn from traditional medicine ...

'' (Trevir.) Meisn. *''

Fagopyrum densivillosum The genus ''Fagopyrum'' is in the flowering plant family Polygonaceae. It includes some important food plants, such as '' F. esculentum'' (buckwheat) and '' F. tataricum'' (Tartary buckwheat). The genus is native to the Indian subcontin ...

'' J.L.Liu *''

Fagopyrum esculentum Buckwheat (''Fagopyrum esculentum'') or common buckwheat is a flowering plant in the knotweed family Polygonaceae cultivated for its grain-like seeds and as a cover crop. Buckwheat originated around the 6th millennium BCE in the region of what ...

'' Moench *''

Fagopyrum gilesii The genus ''Fagopyrum'' is in the flowering plant family Polygonaceae. It includes some important food plants, such as '' F. esculentum'' (buckwheat) and '' F. tataricum'' (Tartary buckwheat). The genus is native to the Indian subcontin ...

'' (Hemsl.) Hedberg *''

Fagopyrum gracilipedoides The genus ''Fagopyrum'' is in the flowering plant family Polygonaceae. It includes some important food plants, such as '' F. esculentum'' (buckwheat) and '' F. tataricum'' (Tartary buckwheat). The genus is native to the Indian subcontin ...

'' Ohsako & Ohnishi *''

Fagopyrum gracilipes The genus ''Fagopyrum'' is in the flowering plant family Polygonaceae. It includes some important food plants, such as '' F. esculentum'' (buckwheat) and '' F. tataricum'' (Tartary buckwheat). The genus is native to the Indian subcontin ...

'' (Hemsl.) Dammer *''

Fagopyrum homotropicum The genus ''Fagopyrum'' is in the flowering plant family Polygonaceae. It includes some important food plants, such as '' F. esculentum'' (buckwheat) and '' F. tataricum'' (Tartary buckwheat). The genus is native to the Indian subcontin ...

'' Ohnishi *''

Fagopyrum jinshaense The genus ''Fagopyrum'' is in the flowering plant family Polygonaceae. It includes some important food plants, such as '' F. esculentum'' (buckwheat) and '' F. tataricum'' (Tartary buckwheat). The genus is native to the Indian subcontin ...

'' Ohsako & Ohnishi *''

Fagopyrum kashmirianum The genus ''Fagopyrum'' is in the flowering plant family Polygonaceae. It includes some important food plants, such as '' F. esculentum'' (buckwheat) and '' F. tataricum'' (Tartary buckwheat). The genus is native to the Indian subcontin ...

'' Munshi * ''Fagopyrum'' × ''kuntzei'' Beck *'' Fagopyrum leptopodum'' (Diels) Hedberg *'' Fagopyrum lineare'' (Sam.) Haraldson *'' Fagopyrum longzhoushanense'' J.R.Shao *'' Fagopyrum luojishanense'' J.R.Shao *'' Fagopyrum macrocarpum'' Ohsako & Ohnishi *'' Fagopyrum pleioramosum'' Ohnishi *'' Fagopyrum pugense'' T.Yu *'' Fagopyrum qiangcai'' D.Q.Bai *'' Fagopyrum rubrifolium'' Ohsako & Ohnishi *'' Fagopyrum statice'' (H.Lév.) Gross *''

'' (L.) Gaertn. *'' Fagopyrum tibeticum'' (A.J.Li) Adr.Sanchez & Jan.M.Burke *'' Fagopyrum urophyllum'' (Bureau & Franch.) Gross *'' Fagopyrum wenchuanense'' J.R.Shao *'' Fagopyrum zuogongense'' Q.F.Chen

References

External links

*
USDA Plants Profile: ''Fagopyrum''

Flora of North America: ''Fagopyrum''

Jepson Manual Treatment: ''Fagopyrum''

https://web.archive.org/web/20150909164416/http://fagopyrum.uhostall.com/: Fagopyrum Journal Archive
{{Authority control Polygonaceae genera Crops originating from Asia Taxa named by Philip Miller

Description

Taxonomy

Species

See also

References

External links