Aralioideae | |
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Clump of Aralia spinosa Nesmith, South Carolina |
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Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
(unranked): | Angiosperms |
(unranked): | Eudicots |
(unranked): | Asterids |
Order: | Apiales |
Family: | Araliaceae |
Subfamily: | Aralioideae |
Tribes | |
Aralieae |
Aralieae
Mackinlayeae
Schefflerieae
and see text
The subfamily Aralioideae contains around 50 recognized genera. These include the genus Panax, to which ginseng belongs. Other notable species are the Angelica-tree (Devil's Walking-stick, Aralia spinosa), the Devil's Club (Oplopanax horridus), or Common Ivy (Hedera helix).
They are traditionally divided into a number of tribes. More recently it has turned out that the Aralieae and Schefflerieae were not accurately delimited. However, with moving some genera around, monophyly of each taxon can probably be achieved. Splitting the Panaceae from the Aralieae is rejected by the current state of knowledge, and whether the Schefflerieae can be accurately subdivided into the Plerandreae and Tetraplasandreae is at least highly doubtful. The Mackinlayeae seem to form a smaller and more basal lineage, but many other genera still await study.