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  1. Family: Polygonaceae Juss.

    1. Polygonum L.

        2. This genus is accepted, and its native range is Cosmopolitan.

    [FTEA]

    Polygonaceae, R. A. Graham. Flora of Tropical East Africa. 1958

    Habit
    Hermaphrodite herbs or (rarely) shrubs, glabrous to very hairy, slender or stout, often paludal
    Ocrea
    Ocreae with or without a terminal fringe of stiff bristles
    Flowers
    Flowers (in E. African spp.) borne in spiciform racemes or terminal capitula
    Bracteoles
    Bracteoles 2, conjoined, thinly membranous and contained within the ocreiform bracts
    Perianth
    Perianth (in E. African spp.) not accrescent, calyciform at the base, with 4–5, often imbricate, petaloid, ± persistent tepals
    Stamens
    Stamens 5–8, included or protruding, a little dilated at the base or conjoined there into a ring
    Pistil
    Styles 2 or 3, often united for part of their length; stigmas capitate
    Fruits
    Ripe nuts often black and shining, acutely to obscurely trigonous, or lenticular with convex or concave (dimpled) sides.
    [FZ]

    Flora Zambesiaca. Vol. 9, Part 3. Polygonaceae-Myriaceae. Pope GV, Polhill RM, Martins ES. 2006.

    Leaves
    Leaves alternate, small, usually less than 2 cm long and articulated at the base, lanceolate-elliptic to oblong Leaves alternate, small, usually less than 2 cm long and articulated at the base, lanceolate-elliptic to oblong.
    Ocrea
    Ocrea membranaceous, silvery or white, often deeply lacerate, glabrous Ocrea membranaceous, silvery or white, often deeply lacerate, glabrous.
    Flowers
    Flowers hermaphrodite, rarely unisexual, solitary or in sessile fascicles springing from the axils of bracts; bracteoles 2, fused, thinly membranous and contained within the bracts Flowers hermaphrodite, rarely unisexual, solitary or in sessile fascicles springing from the axils of bracts; bracteoles 2, fused, thinly membranous and contained within the bracts.
    Perianth
    Perianth segments (4)5, equal or somewhat unequal in length, spirally arranged, often imbricate, free or united in the lower part, petaloid at least in part, with only one main vein (the vein sometimes branched); outer segments keeled or slightly angular, different from the inner Perianth segments (4)5, equal or somewhat unequal in length, spirally arranged, often imbricate, free or united in the lower part, petaloid at least in part, with only one main vein (the vein sometimes branched); outer segments keeled or slightly angular, different from the inner.
    Stamens
    Stamens 4–6, rarely fewer, included or not; filaments broadly dilated in the lower half, free or sometimes united at the base into a ring; anthers globose or ellipsoid, dorsifixed; interstaminal nectaries lacking Stamens 4–6, rarely fewer, included or not; filaments broadly dilated in the lower half, free or sometimes united at the base into a ring; anthers globose or ellipsoid, dorsifixed; interstaminal nectaries lacking.
    Ovary
    Ovary included in the perianth; styles (2)3, free; stigmas capitate
    Fruits
    Nut trigonous, enclosed in the persistent perianth or protruding from it for less than half its length. Nut trigonous, enclosed in the persistent perianth or protruding from it for less than half its length.
    Distribution
    A cosmopolitan genus of c. 20 species, most occurring in north temperate regions (knotweeds).
    Habit
    Annual or perennial prostrate or semi-erect herbs (rarely shrubs), glabrous or hairy. Annual or perennial prostrate or semi-erect herbs (rarely shrubs), glabrous or hairy
    Stem
    Stems much branched. Stems much branched
    Pistil
    Ovary included in the perianth; styles (2)3, free; stigmas capitate.

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    Distribution

    Native to:

    Alabama, Alaska, Albania, Alberta, Algeria, Altay, Amur, Andaman Is., Angola, Argentina Northeast, Argentina Northwest, Argentina South, Arizona, Arkansas, Assam, Austria, Azores, Baleares, Baltic States, Bangladesh, Belarus, Belgium, Benin, Bolivia, Botswana, British Columbia, Bulgaria, Burkina, Buryatiya, California, Canary Is., Cape Provinces, Central European Rus, Chad, Chile Central, Chile South, China North-Central, China South-Central, China Southeast, Chita, Colorado, Connecticut, Corse, Costa Rica, Czechoslovakia, Delaware, Denmark, District of Columbia, East Aegean Is., East European Russia, East Himalaya, Ecuador, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Finland, Florida, France, Free State, Føroyar, Georgia, Germany, Great Britain, Greece, Greenland, Guatemala, Gulf States, Hainan, Honduras, Hungary, Iceland, Idaho, Illinois, India, Indiana, Inner Mongolia, Iowa, Ireland, Irkutsk, Italy, Japan, Kamchatka, Kansas, Kazakhstan, Kentucky, Kenya, Khabarovsk, Kirgizstan, Korea, Krasnoyarsk, Kriti, Krym, Kuril Is., KwaZulu-Natal, Labrador, Libya, Louisiana, Madagascar, Madeira, Magadan, Maine, Malawi, Mali, Manchuria, Manitoba, Maryland, Masachusettes, Mauritania, Mexico Gulf, Mexico Northeast, Mexico Northwest, Mexico Southeast, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Mongolia, Montana, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Nebraska, Netherlands, Nevada, New Brunswick, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Newfoundland, Niger, Nigeria, North Carolina, North Dakota, North European Russi, Northern Provinces, Northwest European R, Northwest Territorie, Norway, Nova Scotia, Nunavut, Ohio, Oklahoma, Ontario, Oregon, Pakistan, Pennsylvania, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Primorye, Prince Edward I., Qinghai, Québec, Rhode I., Romania, Sakhalin, Sardegna, Saskatchewan, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Sicilia, Sinai, Society Is., South Carolina, South Dakota, South European Russi, Spain, Sudan, Swaziland, Sweden, Switzerland, Tadzhikistan, Taiwan, Tanzania, Tennessee, Texas, Tibet, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkey-in-Europe, Turkmenistan, Tuva, Ukraine, Uruguay, Utah, Uzbekistan, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Himalaya, West Siberia, West Virginia, Western Sahara, Wisconsin, Wyoming, Xinjiang, Yakutskiya, Yemen, Yugoslavia, Yukon, Zambia, Zaïre, Zimbabwe

    Introduced into:

    Brazil South, Brazil Southeast, Chile North, Colombia, Falkland Is., Galápagos, Juan Fernández Is., Lesotho, Mauritius, Mexico Central, Paraguay, Réunion, Svalbard, Tristan da Cunha, Wallis-Futuna Is.

    Polygonum L. appears in other Kew resources:

    Date Reference Identified As Barcode Type Status
    Strachey, R. [Cat. no. s.n.] K001132871

    First published in Sp. Pl.: 359 (1753)

    Accepted by

    • Schuster, T.M., Reveal, J.L., Bayly, M.J. & Kron, K.A. (2015). An updated molecular phylogeny of Polygonoideae (Polygonaceae): relationships of Oxygonum, Pteroxygonum, and Rumex, and a new circumscription of Koenigia Taxon 64: 1188-1208.

    Literature

    Flora of West Tropical Africa
    • A. N. Steward in Contrib. Gray Herb. Harv. 88 (1930).
    • —F.T.A. 6, 1: 103
    Flora Zambesiaca
    • Bot. J. Linn. Soc. 98: 340–343 (1988).
    • Ronse Decraene & Akeroyd in Bot. J. Linn. Soc. 98: 340–343 (1988).
    • F.T.E.A., Polygonaceae: 13–14 (1958).
    • Graham in F.T.E.A., Polygonaceae: 13–14 (1958).
    • Meisner in de Candolle, Prodr. 14: 85–101 (1856).
    • de Candolle, Prodr. 14: 85–101 (1856).
    • Gen. Pl., ed. 5: 170 (1754) nom. conserv.
    • Gen. Pl., ed. 5: 170 (1754) nom. conserv.
    • Sp. Pl.: 359 (1753)
    • Sp. Pl.: 359 (1753)
    Flora of Tropical East Africa
    • L., Gen. Pl., ed. 5: 170 (1754)
    • Sp. Pl.: 359 (1753)

    Sources

    Flora Zambesiaca
    Flora Zambesiaca
    http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

    Flora of Tropical East Africa
    Flora of Tropical East Africa
    http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

    Herbarium Catalogue Specimens
    'The Herbarium Catalogue, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published on the Internet http://www.kew.org/herbcat [accessed on Day Month Year]'. Please enter the date on which you consulted the system.
    Digital Image © Board of Trustees, RBG Kew http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

    Kew Backbone Distributions
    The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Selected Plant Families 2019. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and http://apps.kew.org/wcsp/
    © Copyright 2017 World Checklist of Selected Plant Families. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

    Kew Names and Taxonomic Backbone
    The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Selected Plant Families 2019. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and http://apps.kew.org/wcsp/
    © Copyright 2017 International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Selected Plant Families. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

    Plants and People Africa
    Common Names from Plants and People Africa http://www.plantsandpeopleafrica.com/
    © Plants and People Africa http://www.plantsandpeopleafrica.com http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/