Patellifolia

Patellifolia
Patellifolia patellaris
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
(unranked):	Angiosperms
(unranked):	Eudicots
(unranked):	Core eudicots
Order:	Caryophyllales
Family:	Amaranthaceae
Subfamily:	Betoideae
Genus:	Patellifolia A.J.Scott, Ford-Lloyd & J.T. Williams
Species
1-3 species, see text
Synonyms
Beta sect. Procumbentes Ulbr.

1-3 species, see text

Beta sect. Procumbentes Ulbr.

Patellifolia is a genus of flowering plants in the subfamily Betoideae of the plant family Amaranthaceae. These are mostly procumbent herbs occurring in the Western Mediterranean region and Macaronesia, with some isolated occurrences in North Africa and at the Horn of Africa. They are interesting as crop wild relatives of sugar beet.

Patellifolia are annual or perennial herbs, growing erect or often procumbent. The alternate leaves have a petiole, their leaf blade is heart-shaped or hastate.

The spike-like inflorescences consist of glomerules of one to three flowers sitting in the axils of leaf-like bracts. The free flowers are hermaphrodite. The perianth consists of five herbaceous, slightly keeled tepal lobes which are connate at base. There are five stamens opposite to the tepals, their filaments are fused at base forming a disc. The ovary is semi-inferior with 2 stigmas.

In fruit, the ovary is partly immersed in the enlarged base of the perianth. The tepal lobes are not modified and appressed to the fruit. The solitary fruits are nearly globular capsules, they fall down when ripe and open with a circumscissile lid. The vertical seed contains an annular embryo and copious perisperm (feeding tissue).

Patellifolia is mainly distributed in the Western Mediterranean region (Spain, Morocco), Macaronesia and Cape Verde Islands. There are also some isolated occurrences in North Africa (Hoggar Mountains and Tassili n'Ajjer, Libya), and in the Horn of Africa region (Socotra, Somalia).

...
Wikipedia