Gentiana

Spring gentian Gentiana verna, copyright Böhringer Friedrich.

Belongs within: Gentianeae.
Contains: Gentiana section Frigidae, Gentiana section Chondrophyllae, Gentiana section Cruciata, Gentiana section Pneumonanthe.

Gentiana is a cosmopolitan genus of mostly erect herbs, with the highest diversity of species in Asia (Struwe et al. 2002).

Characters (from Struwe et al. 2002): Annual, biennial, or perennial herbs. Stem usually erect, sometimes ascending, simple or branched, mostly quadrangular. Leaves opposite, very rarely whorled. Uppermost leaf pair sometimes forming an involucre around the flowers. Flowers 5-merous (rarely 4- to 8-merous), arranged in simple dichasia, terminal clusters, axillary whorls, or borne singly. Calyx divided shallowly up to the middle, sometimes split to the base on one side. Calyx usually provided with intracalycine membrane, rarely without. Corolla of various shapes, can be tubular, infundibuliform, obconical, hypocrateriform, campanulate, urniform, or rarely rotate. Corolla tube usually longer than corolla lobes, throat rarely provided with fimbriae. Symmetrical or asymmetrical plicae usually present, sometimes fimbriate. Stamens inserted in corolla tube. Filaments usually straight, symmetrical, winged at base, filiform above. Anthers sometimes connate. Ovary sessile or on gynophore, nectary glands present at base. Style usually short or absent, sometimes elongated. Stigmatic lobes often free, sometimes connate. Seeds winged or unwinged.

Gentiana Linnaeus 1753 A61
    |--+--G. sect. Frigidae SK02
    |  `--+--G. sect. Chondrophyllae SK02
    |     |--G. sect. Cruciata SK02
    |     `--G. sect. Pneumonanthe SK02
    `--+--+--+--G. asclepiadea SK02
       |  |  `--G. froelichii SK02
       |  `--G. sect. Gentiana SK02
       |       |--*G. lutea Linnaeus 1753 SK02
       |       |--G. punctata SK02
       |       `--G. purpurea BC02
       `--+--G. sect. Ciminalis SK02
          |    |--G. alpina SK02
          |    `--G. clusii SK02
          `--G. sect. Calathianae SK02
               |--G. bavarica SK02
               |--G. nivalis BC02
               |--G. schleicheri BC02
               |--G. terglouensis SK02
               `--G. verna SK02

Gentiana incertae sedis:
  G. acaulis SK02
  G. argentea O88
  G. atuntsiensis JS02
  G. barbata JS02
  G. bella BC02
  G. brachyphylla BC02
  G. bryoides O88
  G. bulgarica JS02
  G. burkillii O88
  G. burseri JS02
  G. capitata O88
  G. cerastioides JS02
  G. ciliata JS02
  G. corymbosa JS02
  G. crassuloides O88
  G. dasyantha JS02
  G. depressa JS02
  G. detonsa C55
  G. elwesii O88
  G. farreri JS02
  G. favrati JS02
  G. formosana JS02
  G. gelida JS02
  G. glacialis C55
  G. huxleyi O88
  G. infelix O88
  G. karelinii O88
  G. kaufmanniana JS02
  G. kochiana BC02
  G. kurroo JS02
  G. lacerulata O88
  G. lactea JS02
  G. leucomalaena O88
  G. linoides BC02
  G. ludlowii O88
  G. manshurica JS02
  G. marchailhouana JS02
  G. marginata O88
    |--G. m. var. marginata O88
    `--G. m. var. recurvata non G. saxosa var. recurvata Kirk 1885 O88
  G. meiantha O88
  G. micans O88
  G. olgae JS02
  G. orbicularis JS02
  G. ornata O88
  G. pannonica JS02
  G. pedicellata KO88
  G. pentasticta O88
  G. phyllocalyx O88
  G. procera Holm 1901 CD07
  G. producta SK02
  G. prolata O88
  G. (subg. Dolichocarpa) pudica BC02
  G. pumila C55
  G. radicans O88
  G. rigescens JS02
  G. rostani JS02
  G. scabra JS02
  G. schistocalyx JS02
  G. sedifolia SK02
  G. septemfida BC02
  G. serra BC02
  G. sikkimensis JS02
  G. sino-ornata JS02
  G. stipitata O88
  G. strictiflora JS02
  G. stylophora BC02
  G. stylosa O88
  G. suffrutescens JS02
  G. tianscanica JS02
  G. tibetica O88
  G. triflora JS02
  G. tubiflora O88
  G. uchiyamana JS02
  G. utriculosa SK02
  G. venusta O88
  G. vernayi O88
  G. villarsii JS02
  G. vvedenskyi JS02
  G. yunnanensis BC02

*Type species of generic name indicated

REFERENCES

[A61] Allan, H. H. 1961. Flora of New Zealand vol. 1. Indigenous Tracheophyta: Psilopsida, Lycopsida, Filicopsida, Gymnospermae, Dicotyledones. R. E. Owen, Government Printer: Wellington (New Zealand).

[BC02] Bouman, F., L. Cobb, N. Devente, V. Goethals, P. J. M. Maas & E. Smets. 2002. The seeds of Gentianaceae. In: Struwe, L., & V. A. Albert (eds) Gentianaceae: Systematics and Natural History pp. 498–572. Cambridge University Press: Cambridge.

[C55] Candolle, A. de. 1855. Géographie Botanique Raisonée: Ou exposition des faits principaux et des lois concernant la distribution géographique des plantes de l’époque actuelle vol. 1. Librairie de Victor Masson: Paris.

[CD07] Cantino, P. D., J. A. Doyle, S. W. Graham, W. S. Judd, R. G. Olmstead, D. E. Soltis, P. S. Soltis & M. J. Donoghue. 2007. Towards a phylogenetic nomenclature of Tracheophyta. Taxon 56 (3): E1–E44.

[JS02] Jensen, S. R., & J. Schripsema. 2002. Chemotaxonomy and pharmacology of Gentianaceae. In: Struwe, L., & V. A. Albert (eds) Gentianaceae: Systematics and Natural History pp. 573–631. Cambridge University Press: Cambridge.

[KO88] Kikuchi, T., & H. Ohba. 1988. Preliminary study of alpine vegetation of the Himalayas, with special reference to the small-scale distribution patterns of plant communities. In: Ohba, H., & S. B. Malla (eds) The Himalayan Plants vol. 1. The University Museum, University of Tokyo, Bulletin 31: 47–70.

[O88] Ohba, H. 1988. The alpine flora of the Nepal Himalayas: an introductory note. In: Ohba, H., & S. B. Malla (eds) The Himalayan Plants vol. 1. The University Museum, University of Tokyo, Bulletin 31: 19–46.

[SK02] Struwe, L., J. W. Kadereit, J. Klackenberg, S. Nilsson, M. Thiv, K. B. von Hagen & V. A. Albert. 2002. Systematics, character evolution, and biogeography of Gentianaceae, including a new tribal and subtribal classification. In: Struwe, L., & V. A. Albert (eds) Gentianaceae: Systematics and Natural History pp. 21–309. Cambridge University Press: Cambridge.