plant
Plants are predominantly photosynthetic eukaryotes of the kingdom Plantae. Historically, the plant kingdom encompassed all living things that were not animals, and included algae and fungi; however, all current definitions of Plantae exclud ...
genus
Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...
species
In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...
in the
family
Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...
Boraginaceae
Boraginaceae, the borage or forget-me-not family, includes about 2,000 species of shrubs, trees and herbs in 146, to 156 genera with a worldwide distribution.
The APG IV system from 2016 classifies the Boraginaceae as single family of the order ...
. Plants in this genus are known generally as combseeds. They are small annual plants which bear tiny white flowers no more than 3 millimeters in diameter. Their fruits are
nutlet
A nut is a fruit consisting of a hard or tough nutshell protecting a kernel which is usually edible. In general usage and in a culinary sense, a wide variety of dry seeds are called nuts, but in a botanical context "nut" implies that the shell ...
s which often have small projections that look like the teeth of a
comb
A comb is a tool consisting of a shaft that holds a row of teeth for pulling through the hair to clean, untangle, or style it. Combs have been used since prehistoric times, having been discovered in very refined forms from settlements dating ba ...
, hence their common name. The nutlets usually come in clusters of four. These plants are found mainly in western North America.
Selected species:
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Pectocarya heterocarpa
''Pectocarya heterocarpa'' is a species of flowering plant in the borage family known by the common names chuckwalla combseed and mixed-nut pectocarya. It is native to the southwestern United States and northern Mexico, where it grows in desert, ...
'' – chuckwalla combseed
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Pectocarya linearis
''Pectocarya'' is a plant genus of about 15 species in the family Boraginaceae. Plants in this genus are known generally as combseeds. They are small annual plants which bear tiny white flowers no more than 3 millimeters in diameter. Their fruits ...
'' – sagebrush combseed
* ''
Pectocarya palmeri
''Pectocarya'' is a plant genus of about 15 species in the family Boraginaceae. Plants in this genus are known generally as combseeds. They are small annual plants which bear tiny white flowers no more than 3 millimeters in diameter. Their fruits ...
'' – Palmer's grapplinghook
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Pectocarya penicillata
''Pectocarya penicillata'' is a species of flowering plant in the borage family known by the common names sleeping combseed,Pectocarya peninsularis
''Pectocarya peninsularis'' is a species of flowering plant in the borage family known by the common names Baja pectocarya and peninsular pectocarya. It is native to the Sonoran Desert of California and Baja California, where it grows in open des ...
'' – peninsula combseed
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Pectocarya platycarpa
''Pectocarya platycarpa'' is a species of flowering plant in the borage family known by the common names broadfruit combseed and wide-toothed pectocarya. It is native to the southwestern United States and northwestern Mexico, where it grows in ma ...
'' – broadfruit combseed
* ''
Pectocarya pusilla
''Pectocarya pusilla'' is a species of flowering plant in the borage family known by the common names little combseed and little pectocarya. It is native to the west coast of the United States from Washington to central California, where it grows ...
'' – little combseed, purple prairieclover
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Pectocarya recurvata
''Pectocarya recurvata'' is a species of flowering plant in the borage family known by the common names curvenut combseed and arched-nut pectocarya. It is native to the southwestern United States and northwestern Mexico, where it grows in many ty ...
'' – curvenut combseed, combbur
* ''
Pectocarya setosa
''Pectocarya setosa'', known by the common names moth combseed and round-nut pectocarya, is a species of flowering plant in the borage family.
Distribution
The plant is native to western North America, in Northwestern Mexico in Baja California a ...