Ericales

Ericales
Rhododendron simsii
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
(unranked):	Angiosperms
(unranked):	Eudicots
(unranked):	Asterids
Order:	Ericales Bercht. & J.Presl
Families
Actinidiaceae Balsaminaceae Clethraceae Cyrillaceae Diapensiaceae Ebenaceae Ericaceae Fouquieriaceae Lecythidaceae Marcgraviaceae Mitrastemonaceae Pentaphylacaceae Polemoniaceae Primulaceae Roridulaceae Sapotaceae Sarraceniaceae Sladeniaceae Styracaceae Symplocaceae Tetrameristaceae Theaceae Theophrastaceae

The Ericales are a large and diverse order of dicotyledons, including, for example, tea, persimmon, blueberry, Brazil nut, and azalea. The order includes trees, bushes, lianas, and herbaceous plants. Together with ordinary autophytic plants, the Ericales include chlorophyll-deficient mycoheterotrophic plants (e.g., Sarcodes sanguinea) and carnivorous plants (e.g., genus Sarracenia).

Many species have five petals, often grown together. Fusion of the petals as a trait was traditionally used to place the order in the subclass Sympetalae.

Mycorrhiza is an interesting property, frequently associated with the Ericales. Indeed, symbiosis with root fungi is quite common among the order representatives, and three kinds of it can be found exclusively among Ericales (namely, ericoid, arbutoid and monotropoid mycorrhiza). In addition, some families among the order are notable for their exceptional ability to accumulate aluminum.

Ericales are a cosmopolitan order. Areas of distribution of families vary largely - while some are restricted to tropics, others exist mainly in Arctic or temperate regions. The entire order contains over 8,000 species, of which the Ericaceae account for 2,000-4,000 species (by various estimates).

Economic importance

The most commercially used plant in the order is tea (Camellia sinensis) from the Theaceae family. The order also includes some edible fruits, including kiwifruit (Actinidia deliciosa), persimmon (genus Diospyros), blueberry, huckleberry, cranberry, Brazil nut, and Mamey sapote. The order also includes shea (Vitellaria paradoxa), which is the major dietary lipid source for millions of sub-Saharan Africans. Many Ericales species are cultivated for their showy flowers: well-known examples are azalea, rhododendron, camellia, heather, polyanthus, cyclamen, phlox, and busy Lizzie.

Classification

These families are typical of newer classifications. Those marked with an asterisk are recognized in the APG III system.

• Family Actinidiaceae* (kiwifruit family)
• Family Balsaminaceae* (balsam family)
  

  Impatiens balsamina from the Balsaminaceae
• Family Clethraceae* (clethra family)
• Family Cyrillaceae* (cyrilla family)
• Family Diapensiaceae*
• Family Ebenaceae* (ebony and persimmon family)
• Family Ericaceae* (heath, rhododendron, and blueberry family)
• Family Fouquieriaceae* (ocotillo family)
• Family Lecythidaceae* (Brazil nut family)
• Family Maesaceae → Primulaceae
• Family Marcgraviaceae*
• Family Mitrastemonaceae*
• Family Myrsinaceae (cyclamen and scarlet pimpernel family) → Primulaceae
• Family Pellicieraceae → Tetrameristaceae
• Family Pentaphylacaceae*
• Family Polemoniaceae* (phlox family)
• Family Primulaceae* (primrose and snowbell family)
  

  Primula rosea from the Primulaceae
• Family Roridulaceae*
• Family Sapotaceae* (sapodilla family)
• Family Sarraceniaceae* (American pitcher plant family)
• Family Sladeniaceae*
• Family Styracaceae* (silverbell family)
• Family Symplocaceae* (sapphireberry family)
• Family Ternstroemiaceae → Pentaphylacaceae
• Family Tetrameristaceae*
• Family Theaceae* (tea and camellia family)
• Family Theophrastaceae → Primulaceae

These make up a basal group of asterids. Under the Cronquist system, the Ericales included a smaller group of plants, which were placed among the Dilleniidae:

• Family Ericaceae
• Family Cyrillaceae
• Family Clethraceae
• Family Grubbiaceae
• Family Empetraceae
• Family Epacridaceae
• Family Pyrolaceae
• Family Monotropaceae

See also

• Paradinandra

Bibliography

• B. C. J. du Mortier (1829). Analyse des Familles de Plantes : avec l'indication des principaux genres qui s'y rattachent, 28. Imprimerie de J. Casterman, Tournay.
• S. Jansen, T. Watanabe, P. Caris, K. Geuten, F. Lens, N. Pyck, E. Smets (2004). The Distribution and Phylogeny of Aluminium Accumulating Plants in the Ericales. Plant Biology (Stuttgart) 6, 498-505. Thieme, Stuttgart. (Available online: DOI | Abstract)
• W. S. Judd, C. S. Campbell, E. A. Kellogg, P. F. Stevens, M. J. Donoghue (2002). Plant Systematics: A Phylogenetic Approach, 2nd edition. pp. 425–436 (Ericales). Sinauer Associates, Sunderland, Massachusetts. ISBN 0-87893-403-0.
• E. Smets, N. Pyck (Feb 2003). Ericales (Rhododendron). In: Nature Encyclopedia of Life Sciences. Nature Publishing Group, London. (Available online: ELS Site)