Ruscaceae

Nolina bigelovii, copyright Stan Shebs.

Belongs within: Petrosaviidae.
Contains: Polygonatum, Dracaenoideae.

The Ruscaceae are a group of monocotyledons found in warmer regions of the world, often exhibiting adaptations to dry habitats.

Characters (from Eggli & Nyffeler 2020): Trees or shrubs and then often pachycaulous, deciduous herbaceous perennials, or rhizomatous herbs; leaves alternate, spiral or rarely distichous, sometimes reduced to scales and replaced by phylloclades, basally somewhat to distinctly amplexicaul, often in rosettes, strap-shaped to ensiform, more rarely terete, or angular-wiry, usually fibrous-tough and xeromorphic, sometimes slightly to distinctly succulent, margins entire or rarely with prickles, tips blunt, tapering and hardened, or fibrous, almost never sharp and pungent; inflorescence usually terminal but sometimes lateral, or appearing lateral due to later growth of branches, small to huge, usually richly branched and often paniculate, or elongate with condensed lateral branches or fascicles of flowers, or condensed and capitate; flowers often smallish and inconspicuous, usually numerous to very numerous, actinomorphic, hermaphrodite or unisexual, white, whitish, greenish or yellowish, very rarely orange-reddish; tepals 3 + 3 (or sometimes 4), free or more commonly fused and perianth tubular to urceolate; stamens 6, often long exserted; ovary superior, 1- or 3-locular with 1 ovule per locule; fruit few-seeded globose red to orange berries, or dry indehiscent capsules (functionally nutlets); seeds globose to elongate, without true testa, pale-coloured.

<==Ruscaceae [Aspidistraceae, Convallariaceae, Ophiopogonaceae, Polygonataceae, Sansevieriaceae, Tupistraceae] EN20
    |  i. s.: Aspidistra elatior MH98
    |         Ophiopogon japonicus CC87
    |         Polygonatum BL04
    |--+--Convallaria TG88 [Convallarioideae EN20]
    |  |    `--C. majalis TG88
    |  `--+--Dracaenoideae EN20
    |     `--Ruscus G98 [Ruscoideae EN20]
    |          `--R. aculeatus G98
    `--Nolinoideae [Nolinaceae] EN20
         |--Dasylirion Zuccarini 1838 EN20
         |    |  i. s.: D. acrotrichum (Schiede) Zuccarini 1840 (see below for synonymy) EN20
         |    |         D. durangense [=D. wheeleri var. durangense] EN20
         |    |         D. leiophyllum Engelmann ex Trelease 1911 [incl. D. stewartii Johnston 1943] EN20
         |    |         D. longissimum Lemaire 1856 [incl. D. juncifolium Rehnelt 1906] EN20
         |    |         D. quadrangulatum Watson 1879 EN20
         |    |         D. serratifolium (Karwinsky ex Schultes) Zuccarini 1838 (see below for synonymy) EN20
         |    |         D. wheeleri Watson in Rothrock 1878 (see below for synonymy) EN20
         |    |--D. sect. Dasylirion [incl. Eudasylirion Trelease 1911 (nom. inv.)] EN20
         |    |    `--*D. graminifolium (Zuccarini) Zuccarini 1838 [=Yucca graminifolia Zuccarini 1837] EN20
         |    |--D. sect. Glaucophyllum Hochstätter 2011 EN20
         |    |    `--D. (sect. *G.) glaucophyllum Hooker 1858 (see below for synonymy) EN20
         |    `--D. sect. Quadrangulatae (Trelease) Kraus 1930 EN20
         |--Beaucarnea Lemaire 1861 [incl. Calibanus Rose 1906, Pincenectitia Hort. ex Lemaire 1861] EN20
         |    |--*B. recurvata Lemaire 1861 (see below for synonymy) EN20
         |    |--B. compacta Hernández & Zamudio 2003 EN20
         |    |--B. glassiana (Hernández & Zamudio) Rojas-Piña 2014 [=Calibanus glassianus Hernández & Zamudio 2003] EN20
         |    |--B. goldmanii Rose 1909 EN20
         |    |--B. gracilis Lemaire 1861 (see below for synonymy) EN20
         |    |--B. guatemalensis Rose 1906 [=Nolina guatemalensis (Rose) Ciferri & Giacomini 1950] EN20
         |    |--B. hiriartiae Hernández 1992 EN20
         |    |--B. hookeri (Lemaire) Baker 1872 (see below for synonymy) EN20
         |    |--B. olsonii Rojas & Alvarado 2016 EN20
         |    |--B. pliabilis (Baker) Rose 1906 (see below for synonymy) EN20
         |    |--B. purpusii Rose 1906 EN20
         |    |--B. sanctomariana Hernández 2001 EN20
         |    `--B. stricta Lemaire 1861 (see below for synonymy) EN20
         `--Nolina Michaux 1803 EN20
              |  i. s.: N. azureogladiata Donati 2011 EN20
              |         N. beldingii Brandegee 1890 (see below for synonymy) EN20
              |         N. cismontana Dice 1995 EN20
              |         N. excelsa García-Mendoza & Solano 2012 EN20
              |         N. greenei EN20
              |         N. hibernica Hochstätter & Donati 2010 EN20
              |         N. interrata Gentry 1946 EN20
              |         N. macrocarpa EN20
              |         N. matapensis Wiggins 1940 EN20
              |         N. microcarpa V01
              |         N. nelsonii Rose 1906 EN20
              |         N. parryi Watson 1879 (see below for synonymy) H93
              |         N. parviflora (Kunth) Hemsley 1884 (see below for synonymy) EN20
              |         N. pollyjeanneae Hochstätter 2013 EN20
              |--N. sect. Nolina [incl. Graminifoliae Trelease 1911 (nom. inv.)] EN20
              |    `--*N. georgiana Michaux 1803 EN20
              |--N. sect. Arborescentes (Trelease 1911) Hochstätter 2010 EN20
              |    `--N. bigelovii (Torrey) Watson 1879 (see below for synonymy) EN20
              |--N. sect. Erumpentes (Trelease 1911) Hochstätter 2010 EN20
              |    `--N. texana Watson 1879 (see below for synonymy) EN20
              `--N. sect. Microcarpae (Trelease 1911) Hochstätter 2010 En20

Nomina invalida: Beaucarnea congesta EN20
                 Dasylirion robustum EN20

Beaucarnea gracilis Lemaire 1861 [=Dasylirion gracile (Lemaire) Macbride 1918 non (Brongniart) Zuccarini 1845, Nolina gracile (Lemaire) Ciferri & Giacomini 1950, Pincenectitia gracilis Hort. ex Lemaire 1861 (nom. inv.); incl. N. histrix (nom. inv.), Beaucarnea oedipus Rose 1906] EN20

Beaucarnea hookeri (Lemaire) Baker 1872 [=Dasylirion hookeri Lemaire 1859, Calibanus hookeri (Lemaire) Trelease 1911, Nolina hookeri (Lemaire) Rowley 1990; incl. Dasylirion caespitosum Scheidweiler 1861, *Calibanus caespitosus (Scheidweiler) Rose 1906, D. flexile Koch 1867, D. hartwegianum Hooker 1959 (nom. illeg.)] EN20

Beaucarnea pliabilis (Baker) Rose 1906 [=Dasylirion pliabile Baker 1880, Nolina pliabilis (Baker) Lundell 1939; incl. Beaucarnea ameliae Lundell 1939, Dracaena petenensis Lundell 1935, B. petenensis (Lundell) Lundell 1939] EN20

*Beaucarnea recurvata Lemaire 1861 [=Dasylirion recurvatum (Lemaire) MacBride 1918, Nolina recurvata (Lemaire) Hemsley 1884; incl. D. inerme Watson 1891, Beaucarnea inermis (Watson) Rose 1906, B. recurvata var. intermedia Hort. ex Baker 1880, B. recurvata var. rubra Hort. ex baker 1880, Nolina tuberculata (nom. inv.), Pincenectitia tuberculata Lemaire 1861 (nom. inv.), Beaucarnea tuberculata (Lemaire) Roezl 1883 (nom. inv.)] EN20

Beaucarnea stricta Lemaire 1861 [=B. recurvata var. stricta (Lemaire) Baker 1880, Dasylirion strictum (Lemaire) Macbride 1918, Nolina stricta (Lemaire) Ciferri & Giacomini 1950; incl. Pincenectitia glauca Lemaire 1861 (nom. inv.), Beaucarnea glauca (Lemaire) Hereman 1868 (nom. inv.)] EN20

Dasylirion acrotrichum (Schiede) Zuccarini 1840 [=Yucca acrotricha Schiede 1829; incl. Roulinia gracilis Brongniart 1840, Barbacenia gracilis (Brongniart) Brongniart 1840 (nom. inv.), Bonapartea gracilis (Brongniart) Otto 1841 (nom. inv.), Dasylirion gracile (Brongniart) Zuccarini 1845, Littaea gracilis (Brongniart) Verschaffelt 1864, Yucca gracilis (Brongniart) Otto 1841 non Link ex Sweet 1830] EN20

Dasylirion glaucophyllum Hooker 1858 [incl. Bonapartea glauca (nom. inv.), D. glaucum Carrière 1872] EN20

Dasylirion serratifolium (Karwinsky ex Schultes) Zuccarini 1838 [=Yucca serratifolia Karwinsky ex Schultes 1830, Roulinia serratifolia (Karwinsky ex Schultes) Brongniart 1840; incl. Dasylirion laxiflorum Baker 1872] EN20

Dasylirion wheeleri Watson in Rothrock 1878 [incl. D. wheeleri wislizeni Trelease 1911, D. wheeleri var. wislizeni (Trelease) Trelease 1912] EN20

Nolina beldingii Brandegee 1890 [incl. N. beldingii deserticola Trelease 1911, N. beldingii var. deserticola (Trelease) Trelease 1912] EN20

Nolina bigelovii (Torrey) Watson 1879 [=Dasylirion bigelovii Torrey 1857, Beaucarnea bigelovii (Torrey) Baker 1872] EN20

Nolina parryi Watson 1879 [=N. bigelovii ssp. parryi (Watson) Murray 1983, N. bigelovii var. parryi (Watson) Benson 1945; incl. N. parryi ssp. wolfii Munz 1950, N. bigelovii ssp. wolfii (Munz) Murray 1983, N. bigelovii var. wolfii (Munz) Benson 1954, N. wolfii (Munz) Munz 1974] H93

Nolina parviflora (Kunth) Hemsley 1884 [=Cordyline parviflora Kunth 1815, Beaucarnea parviflora (Kunth) Baker 1872, Dracaena parviflora (Kunth) Willdenow 1829; incl. Nolina altamiranoana Rose 1905, N. elegans Rose 1906, Roulinia humboldtiana Brongniart 1840, Dasylirion humboldtii Kunth 1844, R. karwinskana Brongniart 1840, Yucca longifolia Karwinsky ex Schultes 1830, Beaucarnea longifolia (Karwinsky ex Schultes) Baker 1872, Dasylirion longifolium (Karwinsky ex Schultes) Zuccarini 1840, Nolina longifolia (Karwinsky ex Schultes) Hemsley 1884] EN20

Nolina texana Watson 1879 [=Beaucarnea texana (Watson) Baker 1880; incl. N. erumpens compacta Trelease 1911, N. erumpens var. compacta (Trelease) Trelease 1912, N. texana var. compacta (Trelease) Johnston 1943] EN20

*Type species of generic name indicated

REFERENCES

[BL04] Barkman, T. J., S.-H. Lim, K. M. Salleh & J. Nais. 2004. Mitochondrial DNA sequences reveal the photosynthetic relatives of Rafflesia, the world’s largest flower. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA 101 (3): 787–792.

[CC87] Clifford, H. T., J. G. Conran, J. B. Williams, R. J. F. Henderson, H. J. Hewson, E. M. Watson, G. J. Keighery, D. M. Churchill, I. R. H. Telford, A. Thongpukdee, N. H. Brittan, A. S. George, W. T. Stearn & T. D. Macfarlane. 1987. Liliaceae. Flora of Australia 45: 148–419.

[EN20] Eggli, U., & R. Nyffeler (eds) 2020. Illustrated Handbook of Succulent Plants: Monocotyledons 2^nd ed. Springer.

[G98] Gruber, J. 1998. Beiträge zur Systematik der Gattung Dicranolasma (Arachnida: Opiliones, Dicranolasmatidae). I. Dicranolasma thracium Staręga und verwandte Formen aus Südosteuropa und Südwestasien. Annalen des Naturhistorischen Museum in Wien. Serie B. Botanik und Zoologie 100: 489–537.

[H93] Hickman, J. C. (ed.) 1993. The Jepson Manual: Higher Plants of California. University of California Press: Berkeley (California).

[MH98] Morikawa, H., A. Higaki, M. Nohno, M. Takahashi, M. Kamada, M. Nakata, G. Toyohara, Y. Okamura, K. Matsui, S. Kitani, K. Fujita, K. Irifune & N. Goshima. 1998. More than a 600-fold variation in nitrogen dioxide assimilation among 217 plant taxa. Plant, Cell and Environment 21: 180–190.

[TG88] Tepfer, D., A. Goldmann, N. Pamboukdjian, M. Maille, A. Lepingle, D. Chevalier, J. Dénarié & C. Rosenberg. 1988. A plasmid of Rhizobium meliloti 41 encodes catabolism of two compounds from root exudate of Calystegium sepium. Journal of Bacteriology 170 (3): 1153–1161.

[V01] Vánky, K. 2001. The emended Ustilaginaceae of the modern classificatory system for smut fungi. Fungal Diversity 6: 131–147.