Like other members of the Pteriodophytes division, spike mosses have vascular tissue to conduct water and nutrients and reproduce by means of spores rather than seeds. They are dwarf annuals…
The St. John’s Wort family is small and consists of trees, shrubs, and herbaceous annuals and perennials that live in temperate and warm climates. The most famous member of the…
The Pine Family includes the gymnosperms that are most familiar to everyone; pine, spruce, fir, and hemlock plus the not so familiar larch. It also includes Douglas fir which is…
As members of the Plant Kingdom plants generally share three characteristics: they are multicelluar, their cell walls are composed of cellulose, and the cells contain chlorophyll that can trap light…
Known from ancient Egyptian times, members of the water lily family, Nymphaceae, were made famous by Claude Monet’s series of water lily paintings and have become a water garden favorite.…
The mallow family is best known for cotton, cocao, okra, hibiscus, and hollyhock, but includes other plants with showy flowers such as sidalcea, globe mallow, and lavatera, as well as…
Most of the members of the Laurel Family are evergreen tropical trees and shrubs. Some, such as spice bush (Lindera benzoin), and red bay (Persea borbonia) are found in the…
The large white or pink flowers on the various kinds of magnolia trees are a welcome sight in the garden. Although less showy, the flowers of the tulip tree (Liriodendron)…
The Sunflower Family is one of the largest families of flowering plants, second only to the Orchid family. Unlike orchids, the sunflower family is found in both tropical and non-tropical…
The Iris Family (Iridaceae) takes its name from the Greek goddess of the rainbow, Iris. It is comprised mostly of herbaceous plants, some of which are commercially important for their…
Karen