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.

SIUM

Perennial, glabrous; roots clustered, fibrous or ± tuberous
Stem erect or ascending, branched
Leaf: blade oblong to ovate, 1-pinnate, sometimes 2-pinnate when submerged, leaflets distinct, serrate, irregularly cut, or pinnately lobed
Inflorescence: umbels compound, generally opposite a leaf; bracts, bractlets leaf-like, often reflexed, conspicuous; rays, pedicels many, spreading-ascending
Flower sometimes ± bilateral; calyx lobes 0 or minute; petals wide, white, narrowed at tips, outer slightly > others
Fruit ovate to round, slightly compressed side-to-side; ribs prominent, subequal, corky; oil tubes per rib-interval 1–3; fruit axis entire or divided to base, adhering to fruit halves or not
Seed: face flat
Chromosomes: 2n=12
Species in genus: ± 10 species: North America., Eurasia, Africa
Etymology: (Greek: for some aquatic member of family)

Native

S. suave Walter

Plant 6–12 dm, stout
Leaf: petiole 1–8 dm, segmented; blade 6–25 cm, 7–18 cm wide, leaflets 1–4 cm, linear or lanceolate, serrate or irregularly cut
Inflorescence: peduncle 4–10 cm; bracts 6–10, 3–15 mm, linear or lanceolate, acute, entire or irregularly cut, reflexed; bractlets 4–8, 1–3 mm, linear-lanceolate; rays 10–20, 1.5–3 cm, slender, subequal; pedicels 3–5 mm
Fruit 2–3 mm wide
Chromosomes: 2n=12
Ecology: Wet soil of swamps, marshes, streambanks
Elevation: < 2000 m.
Bioregional distribution: sw Sacramento Valley (Suisun Marshes), Great Basin Floristic Province
Distribution outside California: to British Columbia, e N.America, e Asia
Flowering time: Jul–Aug
Horticultural information: TRY.