Rumex albescens

• Common Names
• Description
• Biology
• Taxonomy
• Similar Species
• Bibliography
• More Info
• Notes

Common Names

Description

Family Polygonaceae

Herbs, shrubs , or small trees , sometimes monoecious or dioecious. Stems erect , prostrate , twining , or scandent , often with swollen nodes, striate , grooved , or prickly. Leaves simple , alternate, rarely opposite or whorled , petiolate or subsessile ; stipules often united to a sheath (ocrea) . Inflorescence terminal or axillary , spicate , racemose, paniculate , or capitate. Pedicel occasionally articulate . Flowers small, actinomorphic , bisexual , rarely unisexual . Perianth 3-6-merous, in 1 or 2 series, herbaceous, often enlarged in fruit or inner tepals enlarged, with wings, tubercles , or spines. Stamens usually (3-) 6-9, rarely more; filaments free or united at base ; anthers 2-loculed, opening lengthwise; disk annular (often lobed ) . Ovary superior, 1-loculed; styles 2 or 3, rarely 4, free or connate at lower part. Fruit a trigonous , biconvex , or biconcave achene; seed with straight or curved embryo and copious endosperm.

About 50 genera and 1120 species: worldwide, but primarily N temperate with a few species in tropical regions ; 13 genera (two endemic) and 238 species (65 endemic) in China.Anjen Li, Bojian Bao, Alisa E. Grabovskaya-Borodina, Suk-pyo Hong, John McNeill, Sergei L. Mosyakin, Hideaki Ohba & Chong-wook Park "Polygonaceae". in Flora of China Vol. 5 Page 277. Published by Science Press (Beijing) and Missouri Botanical Garden Press. Online at EFloras.org.

Genus Rumex

Herbs, perennial , biennial, or annual , synoecious (subg. Rumex and Platypodium) or dioecious (subg. Acetosa and Acetosella), occasionally polygamomonoecious, with taproots and usually short caudex , or sometimes rhizomatous and/or stoloniferous . Stems erect , ascending , or prostrate , glabrous or papillose-pubescent. Leaves basal (in some species) and cauline, alternate, petiolate ; ocrea persistent or partially deciduous, membranous; petioles present on basal and proximal cauline leaves, absent on distal cauline leaves, bases not articulated; blades variable in shape , basal (if present) and proximal cauline leaves from broadly ovate or almost orbiculate to linear , becoming progressively smaller and narrower distally, margins entire (or basally lobate ), flat, or occasionally undulate or crisped . Inflorescences terminal , sometimes terminal and axillary , paniclelike, rarely simple . Pedicels present. Flowers bisexual or unisexual , (1-) 4-30 per ocreate fascicle, base stipelike; perianth green, pinkish, or red, campanulate , glabrous; tepals (5-) 6, connate proximally, sepaloid , dimorphic , outer 3 remaining small, inner 3 usually enlarging, sometimes 1-3 with central vein transformed into tuberculate callosity (tubercle) ; stamens 6; filaments distinct , free , glabrous; anthers , yellow to brownish yellow, ovate to elongate ; styles 3, spreading or reflexed , distinct; stigmas 3, fimbriate or plumose . Achenes included in accrescent and usually veiny perianth, tan to dark brown, unwinged to weakly winged , 3-gonous, sometimes compressed-3-gonous or nearly pyramidal , glabrous. Seeds: embryo straight. x = 7, 8, 9, 10 (polyploidy widespread in the genus).

Species 190-200: almost worldwide, but mostly in temperate regions of both hemispheres; some taxa occur in many regions of the world as naturalized or casual aliens .

Carefully collected mature specimens with well-developed inner tepals are desirable for reliable identification of Rumex species. Vegetative characters (in particular, growth habit, basal and proximal cauline leaves, and inflorescences) also are crucial.

In Rumex the distal part of a functional pedicel (below the articulation with a true pedicel) is formed by the narrowed connate basal parts of the outer tepals (also known as a stipelike hypanthium base or pseudopedicel). However, for simplification of the keys and descriptions , the whole functional pedicel (including pseudopedicel) is referred to simply as pedicel.

The genus Rumex in the broad sense may be divided into at least four segregate genera: Rumex in the narrow sense, Acetosa, Acetosella, and Bucephalophora (see e.g. , Á. Löve 1983; Löve and B . M. Kapoor 1967; N. N. Tzvelev 1987b, 1989b). These taxa probably represent distinct phylogenetic lineages ; they have, however, not been generally accepted as separate genera by most taxonomists, including K . H. Rechinger (1937, 1949), monographer of Rumex in the broad sense. Moreover, in some cases they are connected by intermediate forms (especially Acetosa and Acetosella) and evidently are more closely related to each other than to any outgroup genus.

Many Old World species of Rumex may be divided in their native areas of distribution into quite distinct subspecies or varieties. However, the same species occurring in North America as introduced aliens often are represented by atypical , intermediate specimens or even populations (as is true also for many native North American taxa occurring as aliens in Europe), which in many cases obscures those taxonomic distinctions.Sergei L. Mosyakin "Rumex". in Flora of North America Vol. 5. Oxford University Press. Online at EFloras.org.

Physical Description

Biology

Reproduction

Duration: Perennial

Taxonomy

Notes

Name Status: Accepted Name . Latest taxonomic scrutiny: 15-Mar-2000

Similar Species

Members of the genus Rumex

There are approximately 905 species in this genus. Here are just 100 of them:

R. 'Schavel' · R. abyssinicus · R. acetocella · R. acetosa (Dock) · R. acetosa 'Abundance' · R. acetosa 'Crocodile' · R. acetosa 'De Belleville' · R. acetosa 'Profusion' · R. acetosa 'Rhubarb Pie' (Dock) · R. acetosa acetosa · R. acetosa acetosa 'Saucy' · R. acetosa amplexicaulis · R. acetosa islandicus · R. acetosa lapponicus · R. acetosa papillaris · R. acetosa planellae · R. acetosa subsp. alpestris · R. acetosa subsp. amplexicaulis · R. acetosa subsp. biformis · R. acetosa subsp. hibernicus · R. acetosa subsp. islandicus · R. acetosa subsp. lapponicus · R. acetosa subsp. papillaris · R. acetosa subsp. planellae · R. acetosa subsp. vinealis · R. acetosa thyrsiflorus (Garden Sorrel) · R. acetosa var. hortensis · R. acetosa vinealis · R. acetosella (Common Sheep Sorrel) · R. acetosella acetosella · R. acetosella angiocarpus · R. acetosella f. tenuifolius · R. acetosella pyrenaica · R. acetosella subsp. acetoselloides · R. acetosella subsp. arenicola · R. acetosella subsp. pyrenaica · R. acetosella tenuifolius · R. acetosella var. subspathulatus · R. acetosella var. vulgaris · R. acetoselliformis · R. acetoselloides · R. acetosus · R. acidus · R. acmophorus · R. actosella · R. aculeatus · R. acuminatus · R. acutatus · R. acutus (Acute Dock) · R. adscendens · R. adulterinus · R. aeginensis · R. aegyptiacus · R. aegyptius · R. aeroplaniformis · R. aetnensis · R. afer · R. afromontanus · R. agrestis · R. albescens (Oahu Dock) · R. alcockii · R. alexandrinus · R. alexidis (Alex's Dock) · R. algeriensis · R. alismaefolius · R. allioni · R. alluvius · R. alpestris 'Rubra' · R. alpestris alpestris · R. alpestris lapponicus · R. alpestris subsp. lapponicus · R. alpinum · R. alpinus (Munk's Rhubarb) · R. alpinus var. subcalligerus · R. altissimus (Pale Dock) · R. altissimus ellipticus · R. altissimus subsp. ellipticus · R. altissimus var. ellipticus · R. alveolatus · R. amanus · R. ambiguus · R. americanus · R. amplexicaulis · R. amurensis · R. andinus · R. andreaeanus · R. angreni · R. angulatus · R. angustatus · R. angustifolius · R. angustissimus · R. anisotylodes · R. anthoxanthus · R. anthoxantum · R. antiscorbuticus · R. aquaticiformis · R. aquaticus (Western Dock) · R. aquaticus arcticus · R. aquaticus fenestratus · R. aquaticus L. var. fenestratus (Greene) Dorn

Bibliography

• Li Anjen, Kao Tsoching, Mao Zumei & Liu Yulan. 1998. Polygonaceae. In: Li Anjen, ed., Fl. Reipubl. Popularis Sin. 25(1): 1209.
• Löve, Á. and B. M. Kapoor. 1968. A chromosome atlas of the collective genus Rumex. Cytologia 32: 328-342.
• Rechinger, K. H. 1937. The North American species of Rumex. (Vorarbeiten zu einer Monographie der Gattung Rumex 5.) Publ. Field Mus. Nat. Hist., Bot. Ser. 17: 1-150.
• Rechinger, K. H. 1949. Rumices Asiatici. (Vorarbeiten zu einer Monographie der Gattung Rumex 7.) Candollea 12: 9-152.
• Tolmatchew, A. I. 1966. Rumex. In: A. I. Tolmatchew, ed. 1960-1987. Flora Arctica URSS. 10 vols. Moscow and Leningrad. Vol. 5, pp. 143-161.
• Trelease, W. 1892. A revision of the American species of Rumex occurring north of Mexico. Rep. (Annual) Missouri Bot. Gard. 3: 74-98.
• Tzvelev, N. N. 1989b. Rumex, Acetosella, Acetosa. In: S. S. Kharkevich, ed. 1985+. Plantae Vasculares Orientis Extremi Sovetici. 7+ vols. Leningrad. Vol. 4, pp. 29-53.

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Notes

Contributors

• Bisby FA, Roskov YR, Orrell TM, Nicolson D, Paglinawan LE, Bailly N, Kirk PM, Bourgoin T, van Hertum J, eds (2008). Species 2000 & ITIS Catalogue of Life: 2008 Annual Checklist Taxonomic Classification. CD-ROM; Species 2000: Reading, U.K.
• Global Biodiversity Information Facility. Accessed February 02, 2008. http://www.gbif.org Mediated distribution data from 2 providers.
• MBLWHOI Library: Universal Biological Index and Organizer. uBio.org accessed July 17, 2008.

Data Sources

Accessed through GBIF Data Portal February 02, 2008:

• Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum, Bishop Museum Natural History Specimen Data
• USDA PLANTS, USDA PLANTS Database

Identifiers

• Biodiversity Heritage Library NamebankID: 2647093
• Catalogue of Life Accepted Name Code: ITS-20982
• Global Biodiversity Information Facility Taxonkey: 264534
• Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS) Taxonomic Serial Number (TSN): 20982
• U.S.D.A. Plant Symbol: RUAL5
• Zipcode Zoo Species Identifier: 60828

Footnotes

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