Brassicaceae: General characters, Distribution, Important plants, Economic importance and Floral diagram
Posted on : 19-08-2018 Posted by : Admin

 

General Information

Common name: Mustard family

Number of genera: This family includes 375 genera and about 3200 species.

Propagation type: Fruit, partial fruit, seed

Distribution: The species of this family are distributed throughout the world but are abundant in North Temperate Zone with Mediterranean as major center. In India this family is represented by about 51 genera and 138 species distributed around temperate and alpine Himalaya. Some are also found in plains of Northern India and hills of south India.

 

Vegetative characters

Habitat: Members of this family are mostly mesophytes.

Habit: The members of this family are primarily herbaceous. These herbs may be mostly annual or perennial or rarely biennials.

Root system: The members of this family have tap root system. This root system become fleshy in come cultivated species like Raphanus sativus.

Stem: Stem is usually soft, slender covered with branched stellate, unicellular hairs. Few biennial members produce rosette of radical leaves in first year and the flowering shoot in the second year. These plants are often known to contain pungent smelling watery juice. Another most common feature of this family is the presence of glandular, simple stellar hairs.

Leaf: Leaves are simple, entire, pinnate, exstipulate and pinnatifid or pinnatisect. The leaves may be cauline or radicle. Cauline leaves alternate or rarely opposite arrangement.

 

Floral characters              

Inflorescence: It is usually racemose or corymb type. It may be simple or sometimes branched. In corymb (Iberis) inflorescence the bracts and bracteoles are usually suppressed.

Flower: The flowers complete, hermaphrodite, actinomorphic or sometimes zygomorphic (Iberis). Flowers may be tetramerous and hypogynous.

Calyx: The calyx consists of 4 sepals which are free and imbricate in nature. The two outer lateral sepals are often larger and saccate at the base whereas the inner two sepals are usually slimmer.

Corolla: The corolla consists of 4 distinct, diagonally placed petals. Petals are usually long-clawed. In Iberis corolla is zygomorphic. Two anterior petals are much larger than the posterior petals. Petals are rarely absent as in case of Coronopus.

Androecium: Stamens are six in number which are tetradynamous. The filaments of the two inner pairs of stamens are occasionally connate. Sometimes as in Alyssum, the filaments are winged or with tooth like appendages. Anthers are dithecous, introse and open lengthwise. Some species have four stamens (Nasturium) and some have only two lateral stamens (Didymus).

*Tetradynamous- Two outer stamens are opposite to the lateral sepals and four inner stamens are opposite to the petals. Inner stamens have longer filaments than the outer stamens.

Gynoecium: Gynoecium consists of bicarpellary, syncarpous, superior ovary. Ovary has two parietal placentae each with one or many ovules. A false septum extending from one parietal placenta to the other divides the cavity of the ovary into two locules. The style is simple or absent. Stigma is two lobed or discoid.

Pollination: The members of this family are both self-pollinated and insect pollinated. As the flowers are very small, the nectar is not easy available. So the flowers can only be visited by few small insects.

Fruit: The fruit is a pod which dehisces by two valves, break away from below upwards. Seeds remain attached to the persistent placentae. If the pod is cylindrical it is called siliqua (Brassica sps.) and if the pod is short and broad it is called siliqcula (Alyssum). The fruits of this family have importance in taxonomic and systematic studies.

Seed: The seeds are small, non-endospermic with curved embryo. The cotyledons are large incumbent, Accumbent or folded. Seeds are dispersed by birds, cattle, wind or water.

*Incumbent- The radicle is turned up on the back of one cotyledon

*Accumbent- Radicle is facing the edges of both cotyledons

 

Important plants of Brassicaceae

The following is a list of some important members of family Brassicaceae, arranged alphabetically.

1. Alyssum (Basket of gold)

2. Arabis (Rock cress)

3. Brassica campestris (Mustard)

4. Brassica alba (White mustard)

5. Brassica juncea (Indian mustard)

6. Brassica napus (Rape seed)

7. Brassica nigra (Black mustard)

8. Brassica rapa (Turnip)

9. Brassica oleracea gongylodes (Knol-khol)

10. Brassica oleracea capitata (Cabbage)

11. Brassica oleracea gemmifera (Brussels sprouts) 

12. Brassica oleracea botrytis (Cauliflower)

13. Capsella bursa

14. Chieranthus cheri (Wall flower)

15. Eruca sativa (Taramir)

16. Iberis amara (Candy tuft)

17. Mathiola incana (Stocks)

18. Raphanus sativus (Radish)

 

Economic Importance of Brassicaceae

Family Brassicaceae is also called as the mustard family. This family includes 375 genera and about 3200 species. The members of this family are distributed throughout the world. Its members yield several vegetable crops.

1. Vegetable yielding plants

• The young buds, leaves and shoots of various varieties of Brassica oleracea are common vegetable of north India.
• The fleshy stems of Brassica oleracea gongylodes are used as vegetables.
• Fleshy buds of Brassica oleracea capitata, Brassica oleracea gemmifera are also used as vegetables
• Under developed inflorescence of Brassica oleracea botrytis
• The tender leaves and shoots of various varieties of Brassica campestris are used as vegetable.
• The young leaves and tender shoots of Brassica hitra, Brassica juncea are used as vegetable.
• The seeds of Brassica napus are used as vegetable.
• The seeds of Brassica nigra are used as spices and condiments.
• The fleshy roots and pods of Raphanus sativus are used as vegetable.

2. Fatty Oil yielding plants

• Many varieties of Brassica campestris are cultivated as an oil yielding crop in Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Assam. This oil is used for preparation of pickles, cooking, burning lamps, lubricant and massaging body.
• The seeds of Brassica hirta, Brassica campestris, Brassica alba, Brassica juncea, Brassica nigra, Brassica napus, Eruca sativa  yields fatty oil
• The seed oil yielded by Brassica juncea is used for cooking purpose.

3. Cattle feed and fodder

• The oil cake obtained after the manufacture of oil from various varieties of Brassica sps is used as cattle feed and manure.
• The plant Eruca sativa is used as cattle fooder.

4. Seeds of Brassica nigra and Brassica alba are also used as condiment.

5. Medicinal plants

• Capsella bursa is a common weed, which is believed to have medicinal value.
• The seeds of Chieranthus cheri are used for treating bronchitis, fever and injuries to eyes and the flowers are used for treating paralysis and impotence
• Iberis amara plant is used for treating rheumatism and gout and the seeds are used for treating asthma
• The seeds of Mathiola incana are mixed with wine and are given as antidote for poisonous bites. They are also used as tonic in stomach complaints.

6. Ornamental plants

• Chieranthus cheri
• Eruca sativa
• Iberis amara
• Mathiola incana
• Alyssum
• Arabis

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