Caryophyllales
12606 plants · 13 families
The carnation order, including cacti, beets, spinach, and carnivorous plants like sundews and Venus flytraps. Highly diverse in arid environments. Over 12,000 species.
Families in this Order
Aizoaceae
The ice plant family (~1,900 species, 130 genera). Succulent herbs and shrubs with showy flowers and often crystalline papillae on …
Amaranthaceae
The amaranth family (~2,500 species, 174 genera; now includes Chenopodiaceae). Herbs and shrubs with alternate leaves and small flowers. Includes …
Cactaceae
Cactus family
A family of about 1,750 species adapted to arid environments. Native to the Americas. Store water in thick stems. Some …
Caryophyllaceae
The pink family (~2,200 species, 86 genera). Herbs with swollen nodes, opposite entire leaves, and flowers often with notched petals. …
Chenopodiaceae
The goosefoot family (~1,400 species, now largely merged into Amaranthaceae). Halophytes and weedy herbs with simple alternate leaves. Includes beets, …
Droseraceae
The sundew family (~190 species, 3 genera). Carnivorous plants that trap insects with sticky glandular leaves. Includes sundews (Drosera), Venus …
Nepenthaceae
Tropical pitcher plants (~170 species). Carnivorous vines and shrubs with modified leaf tips forming fluid-filled pitfall traps to digest insects. …
Nyctaginaceae
The four o'clock family (~400 species, 35 genera). Herbs, shrubs, and trees with opposite simple leaves and flowers lacking true …
Phytolaccaceae
The pokeweed family (~30 species, 4 genera). Herbs and trees with alternate simple leaves and racemes of small flowers. Includes …
Plumbaginaceae
The leadwort family (~800 species, 30 genera). Herbs and shrubs of salt marshes and dry rocky habitats with small 5-petaled …
Polygonaceae
The buckwheat family (~1,200 species, 48 genera). Herbs with swollen stem nodes (ocrea), alternate leaves, and small often wind-pollinated flowers. …
Portulacaceae
The purslane family (~115 species, 2 genera in restricted sense). Succulent herbs with fleshy leaves, 2 sepals, and 5 petals. …
Tamaricaceae
The tamarisk family (~90 species, 4 genera). Shrubs and trees of arid and saline habitats with scale-like leaves and dense …