Jepson Herbarium
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Indexes to all accepted names and synonyms: | A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z |

Annual, perennial herb, shrub, tree, often vine; sap generally milky.
Leaf: simple, alternate, opposite, subwhorled to whorled, entire; stipules 0 or small, finger-like.
Inflorescence: axillary or terminal, cyme, generally umbel- or raceme-like, or flowers 1–2.
Flower: bisexual, radial; perianth parts, especially petals, overlapped, twisted to right or left, at least in bud; sepals generally 5, fused at base, often reflexed, persistent; petals generally 5, fused in basal ± 1/2; stamens generally 5, attached to corolla tube or throat, alternate lobes, free or fused to form filament column and anther head, filament column then generally with 5 free or fused, ± elaborate appendages abaxially, pollen ± free or removed in pairs of pollinia; nectaries 0 or near ovaries, then 2 or 5[10], or in stigmatic chambers; ovaries 2, superior or ± so, free [ fused]; style tips, stigmas generally fused into massive pistil head.
Fruit: 1–2 follicles, ( capsule), [ berry, drupe].
Seed: many, often with tuft of hairs at 1 or both ends.
200–450 genera, 3000–5000 species: all continents, especially tropical, subtropical South America, s Africa; many ornamental (including Asclepias, Hoya, Nerium, Plumeria, Stapelia); cardiac glycosides, produced by some members formerly treated in Asclepiadaceae, used as arrow poisons, in medicine to control heart function, and by various insects for defense. [Fishbein 2001 Ann Missouri Bot Gard 88:603–623] Asclepiadaceae ("asclepiads"), although monophyletic, included in Apocynaceae because otherwise the latter is paraphyletic. Complexity of floral structure, variation in asclepiads arguably greatest among all angiosperms. Pattern of carpel fusion (carpels free in ovule-bearing region, fused above), present ± throughout Apocynaceae (in broad sense), nearly unknown in other angiosperms. Base chromosome number generally 11; abundance of latex, generally small size of chromosomes evidently have impeded cytological investigations. —Scientific Editor: Bruce G. Baldwin.
Unabridged references: [Civeyrel et al. 1998 Molec Phylogen Evol 9:517–527; Rosatti 1989 J Arnold Arbor 70:307–401]

Key to Apocynaceae

Annual, perennial herb, shrub.
Stem: prostrate to erect.
Leaf: generally opposite ( alternate, whorled), each pair at right angles to those below, above, generally persistent; blade narrow- linear to ovate or cordate.
Inflorescence: terminal or at generally upper nodes, umbel-like cyme.
Flower: ring of tissue at base of corolla 0; filament column appendages (hoods) free, elevated above corolla base or not, each often with an elongate projection (horn) attached to inside, margins converging and meeting or nearly meeting adaxially but not fused; anthers fused into anther head around and fused to pistil head, pollen in pollinia; pistil head flat or conic on top; nectaries in stigmatic chambers.
Fruit: erect (but generally on pendent pedicel) or pendent, lance- ovoid to ovoid, smooth or with tubercles.
In narrow sense of genus, 100 species: North America, C.Am, perhaps South America. (Greek physician Aesculapius) Fresh flowers generally better for determining relative positions of parts; hoods may have near anther head 2 ± sickle shaped lobes each that may ± resemble horns.
Unabridged references: [Liede-Schumann & Meve 2006 http://www.uni-bayreuth.de/departments/planta2/research/databases/delta_as/www/asclep.htm; Woodson 1954 Ann Missouri Bot Gard 41:1–211]

Perennial, generally dense-hairy, ± glabrous in age or not.
Stem: ascending.
Leaf: opposite; petiole generally short; blade elliptic, lanceolate, or ovate.
Inflorescence: terminal and at upper nodes; peduncle ± 0.
Flower: corolla reflexed, cream to purple; hoods ± elevated above corolla base, at ± same level as anther head, yellow-white, occasionally with vertical brown stripe; horns exserted, at ± same level as hoods.
Fruit: erect on ± reflexed pedicels.
Seed: ± 10 mm (largest in CA).
Dry plains, brushy flats, hillsides, desert canyons; 50–1350 m. Great Central Valley, Central Western California, Transverse Ranges, Mojave Desert.

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Citation for the whole project: Jepson Flora Project (eds.) [year] Jepson eFlora, http://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/IJM.html [accessed on month, day, year]
Citation for an individual treatment: [Author of taxon treatment] [year]. [Taxon name] in Jepson Flora Project (eds.) Jepson eFlora, [URL for treatment]. Accessed on [month, day, year].

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Bioregions in which taxon occurs	Markers link to CCH specimen records. If the markers are obscured, reload the page [or change window size and reload]. Yellow markers indicate records that may provide evidence for eFlora range revision or may have georeferencing or identification issues.
Chart based on elevation range in Manual and elevations and coordinates of CCH records. Data provided by the participants of the Consortium of California Herbaria. Note: About half of the CCH records include both elevation and coordinates.	Data provided by the participants of the Consortium of California Herbaria. View all CCH records   CCH collections by month Duplicates counted once; synonyms included. Species do not include records of infraspecific taxa. Blue line denotes Manual flowering time.