MESEMBRYANTHEMACEAE  

Compact or densely tufted shrublets, 150 mm high; stems to 10 mm diameter; adult plants either with erect shoots with elongated internodes and distinct lateral short shoots with very short internodes, or with +/- compact habit without clear distinction between long and short shoots. Leaves opposite, succulent, at least last leaf pair of season persisting on stem until next season; leaf pairs of a season isophyllous, leaves of a pair sometimes slightly anisophyllous, each stem usually developing 2 leaf pairs per season; leaf pairs basally connate for +/- a fifth of their length, leaves erect or spreading, +/- digitiform, often +/- curved, upper surface sometimes flattened, lower surface sometimes somewhat keeled; the very base of the connate portion of a leaf pair developing into a narrow, ring-shaped, persisting, sclerotic sheath, usually brown-red; leaves to 70 mm long, 10 mm in diameter; epidermis with bladder cells. Flowers terminal, emerging towards end of season from connate portion of 2nd or sometimes 1st leaf pair, solitary, pedicellate; pedicels 10-70 mm long, up to +/- 80 mm in diameter; opening in morning, closing in evening. Sepals (4)5 or 6(-8), 3 with membranous margins. Petals 4- or 5-seriate, acuminate, white to lemon yellow, or rarely purplish, inner petals shorter. Stamens: filaments white or yellow, papillate; pollen reticulate, spinulose; staminodes 0-very few. Nectary a finely crenulate, +/- 5-angled ring. Ovary: placentas parietal; stigmas 5, subulate. Fruit a 5-locular capsule, of Mitrophyllum type; closing bodies 0; valve wings broad, recurved; expanding keels diverging, margins toothed, ending in awns; covering membranes covering a half to three-quarters of locule. Seeds globose, brown to light brown, testa minutely papillate. x = 9. F lowering in spring to early summer. D istinguishing characters: shrublets with long, erect branches bearing inflorescences; leaves of a pair forming plant bodies only in juvenile stage; flowers white, on long, red-brown, bare stems.

Annual herbs of tufted habit when young, later branching prostrately. Leaves opposite, radical or clustered at ends of prostrate or decumbent branches, flat, petiolate, sheathing at base, not connate; tannin idioblasts in epidermis (only case known in family), surface covered with wax flakes. Flowers mostly solitary, on elongate, erect pedicels becoming prostrate in fruit; opening in afternoon and closing at night. Sepals 5. Petals free or nearly so, ivory to yellow, fading to orange, epapillate. Stamens epapillate; staminodes 0. Nectary an inconspicuous, faintly crenulate ring. Ovary basin-shaped with a depressed top, with a mushroom-shaped structure in the centre, formed by connate stigmas, with 8 -12 papilla-like stigmatic surfaces on top; placentas axile. Fruit a schizocarpic capsule, 8 -12-locular; without opening devices but breaking up into flat, circular, broadly winged, 1-seeded units (clausae); dispersal anemochoric. x = 9. F lowering from spring to early summer. D istinguishing characters: annual herbs with flat leaves; flowers solitary, petals ivory to yellow, fading to reddish with age, stigmas forming a central column; fruit schizocarpic.

Compact, small to medium-sized shrublets, with erect or somewhat spreading, woody branches. Leaves greenish grey to silvery, strongly compressed lengthwise and keeled on back; leaf margins not very sharp, often with a reddish tinge in full sun; leaf surfaces rough to the touch. Flowers in long, flattened and long-lived inflorescences, faintly scented. Sepals 5, unequal. Petals almost white to light or distinctly pink. Nectary a crenulate ring, or of 5 separate, crenulate glands. Ovary with basal-parietal placentas. Fruit a 6-locular capsule, of Delosperma type; whitish; expanding keels parallel, yellowish; valve wings large; covering membranes 0; closing bodies 0. Seeds medium-sized, pear-shaped, rather glossy. F lowering during late winter and early spring. D istinguishing characters: compact shrublets; leaves greenish grey to silvery green, laterally flattened, sometimes rough, shrinking unevenly when dehydrated, leaf margins reddish purple; pedicel strongly flattened.

Procumbent shrubs with a compact centre of short shoots and 4 -20 trailing floriferous shoots with long, thin internodes. Leaves opposite, scarcely fused at base, trigonous to falcate, dark green, often laterally compressed; stomata not sunken, crystal layer in outer epidermal wall reduced. Flowers 1 -3, bracteate. Sepals 5. Petals white, pink or bicoloured. Stamens in a central cone encircled by many staminodes, brightly coloured apically. Nectary a crenulate ring. Ovary with parietal placentas. Fruit a 10-locular capsule, of Leipoldtia type; turret-shaped with prominent subproximal elevations on covering membranes; expanding keels parallel; expanding sheets extensive. F lowering autumn and winter. D istinguishing characters: flat-growing perennials with long internodes; leaf pairs laterally flattened; fruit 10-locular, turret-shaped on top.

Dwarf, succulent perennials forming small, dense clumps or mats, up to 200 mm high; usually with a short woody rootstock, occasionally with fleshy roots. Leaves often very unequal and variable in shape, connate to different degrees, forming +/- spherical bodies or trigonous with an apical chin to digitiform; light to dark green, bluish green, reddish, metallic grey, whitish green or grey-white; epidermis minutely hairy or with long dense hairs, more rarely smooth; stomata, and in most cases, subsidiary cells, sunken. Flowers solitary, terminal, pedicellate, ebracteate, 20 -80 mm in diameter; opening in afternoon and closing in evening. Sepals 6 -9, unequal. Petals 1 -3-seriate, linear, free, white, pink, or different shades of purple. Stamens: staminodes present or 0, often bearded at base. Nectary of 6(?-9) large, separate, crenulate glands. Ovary often somewhat conical; placentas parietal; stigmas 6 -9, usually stout and subulate, plumose. Fruit a 6 -9-locular capsule, of Drosanthemum type; convex or conical with prominent sutures; valves deltoid, spreading, reflexed when expanded; expanding keels parallel or diverging, rarely toothed, terminating in broad wings; covering membranes present; closing bodies 0. Seeds many in each locule, acutely ovoid, smooth. x = 9 ( polyploidy). F lowering from late winter to early summer. D istinguishing characters: Dwarf perennials with subequal to unequal leaves united into bodies with an oblique fissure separating the leaves of a pair, often velvety; flowers purple or white.