Key to Geraniaceae

View taxon page for Geraniaceae

Jepson Manual glossary definitions can be seen by moving your cursor over words underlined with dots.

1. Flower ± 

bilateral 

Divisible into mirror-image halves in only one way.

; nectary 1, deeply embedded into receptacle; fertile stamens 1–7, united at base ..... PELARGONIUM

1' Flower 

radial 

Divisible into mirror-image halves in three or more ways.

(± bilateral); nectaries 5, on petal bases; fertile stamens 5 or 10, free

2. Fertile stamens generally 10; 

leaf 

Organ arising from a stem, generally composed of a stalk (petiole) and a flat, expanded, green, photosynthetic area (blade); distinguished from a leaflet by the presence in its axil of a bud, branch, thorn, or flower; sometimes with lateral, basal appendages (stipules); either simple (toothed, lobed, or dissected but not divided into leaflets) or compound (divided into leaflets).

 palmately lobed to divided ..... GERANIUM

2' Fertile stamens generally 5; leaf 

crenate 

Pertaining to margins with shallow, rounded teeth, between which are usually acute sinuses (i.e., scalloped)

to shallowly ± palmately lobed or generally pinnately lobed to compound

3. Staminodes 0; leaf 

simple 

Composed of a single part; undivided; unbranched.

, ± palmately lobed or not, veins ± 

palmate 

More than two structures or parts (e.g., veins, lobes, or leaflets) radiating from a common point in two dimensions (i.e., in one plane).

..... CALIFORNIA

3' Staminodes 5, 

alternate 

1. Arranged singly, often spirally, along an axis - e.g., one leaf per node. 2. Occurring in different ranks, appearing to be between, not directly above or below, as 'stamens alternate petals'.

stamens; leaf simple to pinnately compound, veins 

pinnate 

Feather-like; pertaining to veins, lobes, leaflets, or other structures arranged in two dimensions (i.e., in one plane) along either side of an axis; a leaf is odd-pinnate if there is a terminal leaflet, even-pinnate if there is not, and either odd- or even-pinnate may be 1-pinnate (blade divided into primary leaflets), 2-pinnate (primary leaflets divided into secondary leaflets), 3-pinnate (secondary leaflets divided into tertiary leaflets), etc.

..... ERODIUM

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