Family Haloragaceae
Description: Herbs or small shrubs, aquatic or terrestrial.
Leaves alternate, opposite or whorled, simple, margins entire, toothed or deeply dissected; stipules absent.
Inflorescences of axillary dichasia or terminal thyrsoids, sometimes reduced and spike-like. Flowers actinomorphic, bisexual or sometimes unisexual and then plants dioecious or monoecious; usually 4-merous or sometimes 2- or 3-merous. Sepals free, persistent on fruit. Petals free, sometimes absent. Stamens equal to or twice as many as the sepals; filaments slender, free. Ovary inferior usually 4- or sometimes 2- or 3-locular; styles mostly equal in number to the sepals; stigmas ± capitate.
Fruit a 1–4-seeded nut, usually indehiscent but splitting into four 1-seeded mericarps in Myriophyllum.
Distribution and occurrence: World: 8 genera, c. 152 species, mainly Southern Hemisphere. Australia: 6 genera, 109 species, all States.
External links:
Angiosperm Phylogeny Website (Family: Haloragaceae, Order: Saxifragales)
Wikipedia
Text by Peter G. Wilson
Taxon concept:
| | Key to the genera | |
| 1 | All flowers with petals; terrestrial plants | 2 |
| Female flowers lacking petals; aquatic herbs | Myriophyllum |
| 2 | Flowering shoot not ending with a flower; anthers not apiculate | 3 |
| Flowering shoot terminating in a flower; anthers shortly apiculate
Back to 1 | 4 |
| 3 | Fruits 2–4-locular, woody; flowers usually in axillary groups of 3–7 | Haloragis |
| Fruits 1-locular, membranous; flowers usually solitary in axils
Back to 2 | Gonocarpus |
| 4 | Leaves opposite, regularly toothed; inflorescences narrow and spike-like | Haloragodendron |
| Leaves alternate, entire; inflorescences spreading and umbel-like
Back to 2 | Glischrocaryon |
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