TREATMENT FROM THE JEPSON MANUAL	previous taxon | next taxon Jepson Interchange (more information)
	©Copyright 1993 by the Regents of the University of California Print edition is available from the University of California Press

	The second edition of The Jepson Manual (2012) is available from the University of California Press
	See also the Jepson eFlora, which parallels the Second Edition

APIACEAE

CARROT FAMILY

Lincoln Constance

Annual, biennial, perennial herb (rarely shrub, tree), often from taproot
Stem often ± scapose, generally ribbed, hollow
Leaves basal and generally some cauline, generally alternate; stipules generally 0; petiole base generally sheathing stem; blade generally much dissected, sometimes compound
Inflorescence: umbel or head, simple or compound, generally peduncled; bracts present (in involucres) or not; bractlets generally present (in involucels)
Flowers many, small, generally bisexual (or some staminate), generally radial (or outer bilateral); calyx 0 or lobes 5, small, atop ovary; petals 5, free, generally ovate or spoon-shaped, generally incurved at tips, generally ± ephemeral; stamens 5; pistil 1, ovary inferior, 2-chambered, generally with a ± conic, persistent projection or platform on top subtending 2 free styles
Fruit: 2 dry, 1-seeded halves that separate from each other but generally remain attached for some time to a central axis; ribs on each half 5, 2 marginal and 3 on back; oil tubes 1–several per interval between ribs
Genera in family: 300 genera, 3,000 species: ± worldwide, especially temp; many cultivated for food or spice (e.g., Carum, caraway; Daucus; Petroselinum); some highly toxic (e.g., Conium). Underground structures here called roots, but true nature remains problematic. Mature fruit generally critical in identification; shapes generally given in outline, followed by shape in X -section of 2 fruit halves together.

CORIANDRUM

Annual, taprooted, glabrous
Stem erect, branched
Leaf: blade oblong to ovate, ternately or pinnately lobed to pinnately dissected
Inflorescence: umbels compound, terminal and lateral; bracts 0; bractlets few, small; rays, pedicels few, spreading-ascending
Flowers: marginal bilateral; calyx lobes prominent, unequal; petals oblong, white or rosy, marginal 2-lobed, tips of all narrowed; styles elongate
Fruit ± round; halves not separating readily; ribs 1° and 2°, thread-like, in a hard fruit-wall; oil tubes 0; fruit axis divided to base
Seed: face concave
Species in genus: 1–2 species: Medit, 1 widely cultivated
Etymology: (Greek name for this anciently cultivated condiment)

Introduced

C. sativum L.

CORIANDER, CILANTRO

Plant 2–8 dm, foul-smelling
Leaves: basal clustered, 3–15 cm, oblong to ovate, ternately or pinnately lobed to 1-pinnate with leaflets 1–2 cm, ovate to round, petiole 2–10 cm; upper cauline ovate, pinnately dissected with segments 2–15 mm, thread-like to linear, petiole 0
Inflorescence: peduncles 0 or 3–10 cm; bractlets 2–4 mm, linear; rays 2–8, 1–2.5 cm; pedicels 2–5 mm
Flower: calyx lobes widely lanceolate
Fruit 2.5–5 mm wide
Chromosomes: 2n=22
Ecology: Disturbed places, often near gardens
Elevation: generally < 1000 m.
Bioregional distribution: California Floristic Province
Distribution outside California: to Mexico, tropical America; native to Mediterranean