Brassicaceae

Brassicaceae also known as Cruciferae, is found in all parts of the world but is concentrated in northern temperate zones with most diversity around the Mediterranean. It contains 330 genera and about 3,700 species. It is one of the most important economic families in the world. Many crop plants such as broccoli, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, radishes, etc... all come from a single species Brassica oleracea within this family. The extremely important research model plant Arabidopsis thaliana also belongs to this family. Plants contain mustard oil which serves as an insect deterrent and gives these plants a distinctive pungent bite when eaten. Some members of this family, such as radishes and horseradish, will tend towards a thick tap-root system.

We have the genus Cardamine represented on the wiki.


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Page last modified on October 31, 2009, at 07:11 AM
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