''Hectorella'' is a genus of

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants th ...

s belonging to the family

Montiaceae Montiaceae are a family of flowering plants, comprising about 14 genera with about 230 known species, ranging from small herbaceous plants to shrubs. The family has a cosmopolitan distribution. The family Montiaceae was newly adopted in the APG ...

. It is

monotypic In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unispe ...

, being represented by the single species ''Hectorella caespitosa''. It is native to New Zealand. The genus name of ''Hectorella'' is in honour of

James Hector Sir James Hector (16 March 1834 – 6 November 1907) was a Scottish-New Zealand geologist, naturalist, and surgeon who accompanied the Palliser Expedition as a surgeon and geologist. He went on to have a lengthy career as a government employe ...

(1834–1907), a Scottish-New Zealand geologist, naturalist and surgeon. The Latin specific epithet of ''caespitosa'' refers to ''

caespitose This glossary of botanical terms is a list of definitions of terms and concepts relevant to botany and plants in general. Terms of plant morphology are included here as well as at the more specific Glossary of plant morphology and Glossary o ...

'' meaning tufted or turf-like, from ''caespes'' or Cf. ''caespititius''. ''Hectorella caespitosa'' was first described and published in Handb. N. Zeal. Fl. Vol.1 on page 27 in 1864.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q19868773 Montiaceae Endemic flora of New Zealand Caryophyllales genera Plants described in 1864