Taxaceae

Taxaceae

▪ plant family
      the yew family, in the order Pinales, containing 6 genera and 30 species of evergreen trees and shrubs, distributed mainly in the Northern Hemisphere. The plants have many branches, covered with alternate, needlelike leaves. Pollen-bearing and ovule-bearing plants are usually separate; the pollen-bearing reproductive units are contained within conelike structures. The usually solitary seeds are covered by fleshy arils (berrylike or plumlike structures) that apparently aid in dispersal by animals. The seed tip is exposed in species of Austrotaxus.

      The genus Austrotaxus has only one species (A. spicata), native to mountain forests of New Caledonia. Growing from 15 to 25 metres tall, the tree resembles the yellow woods in leaf characteristics and growth habit but differs in flower structure and the presence of the seed covering.

      The genus Pseudotaxus has one species (P. chienii), a shrub from eastern China, seldom more than 4 metres high. It resembles Taxus in general appearance but has a cup-shaped, white seed covering.

      The largest genus, Taxus ( yew), has about eight species and many varieties, distributed in North America, Europe, Asia Minor, and eastern Asia.

       Torreya comprises about six species distributed in localized areas in East Asia, California, and the southeastern United States. The leaves of these small to medium-sized trees are relatively hard and rigid compared with those of the closely related Taxus.

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Universalium. 2010.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • Taxaceae — Taxacées …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Taxaceae —   [zu lateinisch taxus »Eibe«], die Eibengewächse …   Universal-Lexikon

  • Taxaceae — Taxacées Taxus baccata …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Taxaceae — Taxobox name = Taxaceae image width = 250px image caption = A fleshy aril partly surrounds each seed in the yews; note also immature cones with seed not yet surrounded by the aril regnum = Plantae divisio = Pinophyta classis = Pinopsida ordo =… …   Wikipedia

  • Taxaceae —   Taxáceas …   Wikipedia Español

  • Taxaceae — ? Тисовые Ветвь со зрелыми семенами тиса ягодного Научная классификация Царство: Растения Отдел …   Википедия

  • Taxaceae — Eibengewächse Europäische Eibe (Taxus baccata), Illustration Systematik Unterreich …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Taxaceae — noun sometimes classified as member of order Taxales • Syn: ↑family Taxaceae, ↑yew family • Hypernyms: ↑gymnosperm family • Member Holonyms: ↑Coniferales, ↑order Coniferales …   Useful english dictionary

  • Taxaceae — Árboles o arbustos perennifolios, monoicos o dioicos, resiníferos. Hojas aciculares, opuestas o en verticilos trímeros. Flores masculinas con escamas en la base; estambres con 3 hasta 7 sacos polínicos. Flores femeninas ... . Infrutescencia …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • taxaceae — tax·a·ce·ae …   English syllables

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