Proteales

(botany) An order of dicotyledonous plants in the subclass Rosidae marked by its strongly perigynous flowers, a four-lobed, often corolla-like calyx, and reduced or absent true petals.

An order of flowering plants, division Magnoliophyta, in the eudicots. Consisting of three families, the order is one of the most controversial in current classifications, with a lack of obvious morphological characters linking the family Nelumbonaceae (two species) to the other two families, Platanaceae (seven species) and Proteaceae (about 1350 species). However, DNA sequences indicate that the three families form a natural group. See also Magnoliophyta; Magnoliopsida; Wood anatomy.

Nelumbonaceae are aquatic, rhizomatous herbs with peltate leaves held above the water on long petioles, and have often been thought to be related to the true waterlilies (Nymphaeales). Nelumbo (sacred lotus and American lotus) is used as a source of food, as an ornamental, and as a sacred plant in several Asian countries.

Platanaceae, from the Northern Hemisphere, are deciduous, monoecious trees with simple, palmately lobed leaves, flaking bark, and branched hairs. Plane trees (Platanus) are common street trees, due to the regular loss of bark (which gives some resistance to pollution), and they also provide timber. See also Bark; Deciduous plants; Fruit; Leaf; Nymphaeales.

Proteaceae (predominantly tropical and subtropical, in the Southern Hemisphere) are evergreen shrubs and trees that often accumulate aluminum. Several genera (including Banksia, Protea, and Leucospermum) are widely cultivated for cut flowers; Grevillea and other genera are used for timber; and Macadamia yields edible nuts. See also Evergreen plants; Root (botany).

The noun has one meaning:

Meaning #1: coextensive with the family Proteaceae
  Synonym: order Proteales

Proteales
Protea cynaroides
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
(unranked):	Angiosperms
(unranked):	Eudicots
Order:	Proteales Dumort. (1829)
Families
Nelumbonaceae (lotus) Platanaceae (plane trees) Proteaceae

Proteales is the botanical name of an order of flowering plants. Such an order has been recognized by almost all taxonomists.

Contents 1 Families 2 Classification 2.1 Cronquist 2.2 Dahlgren & Thorne 2.3 Engler 2.4 Wettstein

Families

The APG II system, of 2003, also recognizes this order, and places it in the clade eudicots with this circumscription:

• order Proteales

• family Nelumbonaceae
• family Proteaceae [+ family Platanaceae]

with "+ ..." = optional segregrate family, that may be split off from the preceding family.

Well-known members of Proteales include the proteas of South Africa, the banksias and macadamias of Australia, the London plane, and the sacred lotus. The origins of the order are clearly ancient, with evidence of diversification in the mid Cretaceous, over 100 million years ago. Of interest are the current family distributions, with the Proteaceae a mostly southern hemisphere family while Platanaceae and Nelumbonaceae northern hemisphere.

Classification

This represents a slight change from the APG system, of 1998, which firmly did accept family Platanaceae as separate, using this circumscription of the order:

• order Proteales

• family Nelumbonaceae
• family Platanaceae
• family Proteaceae

Cronquist

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Proteales

The Cronquist system, of 1981, recognized such an order and placed it in subclass Rosidae in class Magnoliopsida [=dicotyledons]. It used this circumscription:

• order Proteales

• family Elaeagnaceae
• family Proteaceae

Dahlgren & Thorne

The Dahlgren system and Thorne system (1992) recognized such an order and placed it in superorder Proteanae in subclass Magnoliidae [=dicotyledons]. These systems used this circumscription:

• order Proteales

• family Proteaceae

Engler

The Engler system, in its update of 1964, also recognized this order and placed it in subclass Archichlamydeae of class Dicotyledoneae. It used this circumscription:

• order Proteales

• family Proteaceae

Wettstein

The Wettstein system, last revised in 1935, also recognized this order and placed it in the Monochlamydeae in subclass Choripetalae of class Dicotyledones. It used this circumscription:

• order Proteales

• family Proteaceae

This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)