''Chenopodiastrum'' is a genus of

herbaceous Herbaceous plants are vascular plants that have no persistent woody stems above ground. This broad category of plants includes many perennials, and nearly all annuals and biennials. Definitions of "herb" and "herbaceous" The fourth edition ...

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. They include all forbs (flowering plants without a woody stem), grasses and grass-like plants, a vast majority of ...

s in the family

Amaranthaceae Amaranthaceae is a family of flowering plants commonly known as the amaranth family, in reference to its type genus '' Amaranthus''. It includes the former goosefoot family Chenopodiaceae and contains about 165 genera and 2,040 species, making i ...

. The genus was formally described in 2012. The 5 species occur in

Eurasia Eurasia (, ) is the largest continental area on Earth, comprising all of Europe and Asia. Primarily in the Northern and Eastern Hemispheres, it spans from the British Isles and the Iberian Peninsula in the west to the Japanese archipelag ...

North Africa North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in t ...

, and North America.

Description

The species in genus ''Chenopodiastrum'' are non-aromatic

annual Annual may refer to: * Annual publication, periodical publications appearing regularly once per year **Yearbook **Literary annual * Annual plant *Annual report *Annual giving *Annual, Morocco, a settlement in northeastern Morocco *Annuals (band), ...

herbs. Young plants have vesicular

trichome Trichomes (); ) are fine outgrowths or appendages on plants, algae, lichens, and certain protists. They are of diverse structure and function. Examples are hairs, glandular hairs, scales, and papillae. A covering of any kind of hair on a pl ...

s, that later collapse and fall down, thus plants becoming glabrescent. Stems grow erect, with lateral branches. The alternate leaves have a petiole and a thickish triangular, ovate, rhombic-ovate to lanceolate leaf blade. The leaf margin can be irregularly dentate or lobed, or pinnatifid with narrow dentate lobes. The axillary and terminal

inflorescence An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed ...

s consist of small dense glomerules of flowers, arranged spicately or paniculately. Flowers are

bisexual Bisexuality is a romantic or sexual attraction or behavior toward both males and females, or to more than one gender. It may also be defined to include romantic or sexual attraction to people regardless of their sex or gender identity, wh ...

pistillate Gynoecium (; ) is most commonly used as a collective term for the parts of a flower that produce ovules and ultimately develop into the fruit and seeds. The gynoecium is the innermost whorl of a flower; it consists of (one or more) '' pistils' ...

. They contain 5 basally connate

perianth The perianth (perigonium, perigon or perigone in monocots) is the non-reproductive part of the flower, and structure that forms an envelope surrounding the sexual organs, consisting of the calyx (sepals) and the corolla (petals) or tepals when ca ...

segments with a prominent keel near the apex, and a characteristic strong midrib visible from the inside; a circle of 5

stamens The stamen (plural ''stamina'' or ''stamens'') is the pollen-producing reproductive organ of a flower. Collectively the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filam ...

; and an ovary with 2 stigmas. In fruit, the perianth lobes enclose the fruit or spread. The membraneous

pericarp Fruit anatomy is the plant anatomy of the internal structure of fruit. Fruits are the mature ovary or ovaries of one or more flowers. They are found in three main anatomical categories: aggregate fruits, multiple fruits, and simple fruits. Ag ...

adheres firmly to the seed. The horizontally orientated seeds are lenticular. The black seed coat is often prominently pitted, sometimes rugulose or nearly smooth.

Systematics and distribution

The genus ''Chenopodiastrum'' was described in 2012 by

Suzy Fuentes-Bazan Suzy may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Suzy'' (film), a 1936 film starring Jean Harlow, Franchot Tone and Cary Grant * "Suzy" (Fool's Garden song), a song by German pop band Fool's Garden * "Suzy", a song by French electro swing band Car ...

, Pertti Uotila und

Thomas Borsch Thomas may refer to: People * List of people with given name Thomas * Thomas (name) * Thomas (surname) * Saint Thomas (disambiguation) * Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church * Thomas the Ap ...

(in: A novel phylogeny-based generic classification for ''Chenopodium'' sensu lato, and a tribal rearrangement of Chenopodioideae (Chenopodiaceae). in ''Willdenowia'' 42, p. 14). After

phylogenetic In biology, phylogenetics (; from Greek φυλή/ φῦλον [] "tribe, clan, race", and wikt:γενετικός, γενετικός [] "origin, source, birth") is the study of the evolutionary history and relationships among or within groups o ...

research, this group of species had to be separated from genus ''

Chenopodium ''Chenopodium'' is a genus of numerous species of perennial or annual herbaceous flowering plants known as the goosefoots, which occur almost anywhere in the world. It is placed in the family Amaranthaceae in the APG II system; older classific ...

'', that would otherwise have been

polyphyletic A polyphyletic group is an assemblage of organisms or other evolving elements that is of mixed evolutionary origin. The term is often applied to groups that share similar features known as homoplasies, which are explained as a result of conver ...

. The genus ''Chenopodiastrum'' belongs to the same tribe as ''Chenopodium'', Tribus

Atripliceae Atripliceae are a tribe of the subfamily Chenopodioideae belonging to the plant family Amaranthaceae. ''Atriplex'' is the largest genus of the tribe. Species of Atripiceae are ecologically important in steppe and semi-desert climates. Distribu ...

. ''Chenopodiastrum'' consists of 5 species, occurring in

, and North America: *'' Chenopodiastrum badachschanicum'' (Tzvelev) S.Fuentes, Uotila & Borsch, (syn. ''Chenopodium badachschanicum'' Tzvelev): In

Middle Asia Middle or The Middle may refer to: * Centre (geometry), the point equally distant from the outer limits. Places * Middle (sheading), a subdivision of the Isle of Man * Middle Bay (disambiguation) * Middle Brook (disambiguation) * Middle Creek ( ...

, China, northeastern

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bord ...

, northern

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

, northern

India India, officially the Republic of India ( Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the ...

and

Nepal Nepal (; ne, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne, सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is ma ...

.''Chenopodium badachschanicum''
In: Helmut Freitag et al.: ''Chenopodiaceae''. In: ''Flora of Pakistan'', Volume 204 - Missouri Botanical Garden Press & University of Karachi. *'' Chenopodiastrum coronopus'' (Moq.) S.Fuentes, Uotila & Borsch, (syn. ''Chenopodium coronopus'' Moq.): endemic on

Canary Islands The Canary Islands (; es, Canarias, ), also known informally as the Canaries, are a Spanish autonomous community and archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, in Macaronesia. At their closest point to the African mainland, they are west of Mo ...

, Ilhas Selvagens, and probably

Madeira ) , anthem = ( en, "Anthem of the Autonomous Region of Madeira") , song_type = Regional anthem , image_map=EU-Portugal_with_Madeira_circled.svg , map_alt=Location of Madeira , map_caption=Location of Madeira , subdivision_type=Sovereign st ...

.Pertti Uotila, 2011: ''Chenopodiaceae (pro parte majore):'
''Chenopodium coronopus''
– In: ''Euro+Med Plantbase - the information resource for Euro-Mediterranean plant diversity'', retrieved 2 July 2013 *''

Chenopodiastrum hybridum ''Chenopodiastrum hybridum'' is a species of flowering plant in the family Amaranthaceae. It is found in Europe and Asia. References Chenopodioideae Flora of Malta {{Amaranthaceae-stub ...

'' (L.) S.Fuentes, Uotila & Borsch (syn. ''Chenopodium hybridum'' L.): in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located enti ...

, India and from temperate Asia to China. *'' Chenopodiastrum murale'' (L) S.Fuentes, Uotila & Borsch (syn. ''Chenopodium murale'' L. ): in Europe, North Africa and

Southwest Asia Western Asia, West Asia, or Southwest Asia, is the westernmost subregion of the larger geographical region of Asia, as defined by some academics, UN bodies and other institutions. It is almost entirely a part of the Middle East, and includes Ana ...

. *'' Chenopodiastrum simplex'' (Torr.) S.Fuentes, Uotila & Borsch (syn. ''Chenopodium hybridum'' var. ''simplex'' Torr.): in North America.

References

External links

*
''Chenopodiastrum''
at Tropicos {{Taxonbar, from=Q13847552 Chenopodioideae Amaranthaceae genera