Euphorbiales

(botany) An order of dicotyledonous plants in the subclass Rosidae having simple leaves and unisexual flowers that are aggregated and reduced.

An order of flowering plants, division Magnoliophyta (Angiospermae), in the subclass Rosidae of the class Magnoliopsida (dicotyledons). The order consists of the large family Euphorbiaceae (about 7500 species) and 3 small satellite families which have fewer than 100 species among them. The Euphorbiales are a group of few-ovulate, mostly simple-leaved Rosidae in which the flowers have become unisexual and then undergone further reduction accompanied by aggregation.

The Christmas poinsettia (E. pulcherrima) and the para rubber tree (Hevea brasiliensis) are well-known members of the Euphorbiaceae. Many African euphorbiads are spiny stem-succulents which resemble cacti in habit. Aside from the pronounced floral differences, the euphorbiads have a milky juice, which the cacti do not. See also Magnoliopsida; Plant kingdom; Rosidae.

Euphorba milii

Euphorbiales is the botanical name of an order of flowering plants. Such an order has been recognized by relatively few taxonomists.

In the APG II system (2003) the plants involved are placed in order Malpighiales. A well known system that did recognize such an order was the Cronquist system (1981) which placed the order in subclass Rosidae and used this circumscription:

• order Euphorbiales

  family Buxaceae

  family Simmondsiaceae

  family Euphorbiaceae

  family Pandaceae

This usage of family Euphorbiaceae is in the wide sense: since that time the family has been split.

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