Spermatophyta: Dicotyledonae: Archichlamydeae: Santalales

Viscaceae - Mistletoe family

Polhill, R.M. & Wiens, D. (2006) Viscaceae Flora Zambesiaca 9(3)

Description of the family

Dioecious or monoecious perennial herbs or shrubs, hemiparasitic on the stems of woody plants. Stems green, brittle, often with swollen, articulated nodes. Stipules 0. Leaves opposite, simple, evergreen, often reduced to scales. Flowers minute, unisexual. Perianth segments usually 2-4. Male flowers with stamens as many as sepals; style vestigial or 0. Female flowers with short or 0 style and linear or capitate stigma. Ovary inferior. Fruit a 1-seeded berry.

Comment: This family is now longer recognized. All genera, such as Viscum, have now been included in the family Santalaceae.

Worldwide: 7 genera and 385 species, cosmopolitan, occurring particularly in tropical and warm areas.

Botswana: 0 genera and 0 taxa.

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Links to genera:     View: living plant images - herbarium specimen images - all images for this family

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Other sources of information about Viscaceae:

Our websites:

Flora of Malawi: Viscaceae
Flora of Mozambique: Viscaceae
Flora of Mozambique: cultivated Viscaceae
Flora of Zambia: Viscaceae
Flora of Zimbabwe: Viscaceae

External websites:

African Plants: A Photo Guide (Senckenberg): Viscaceae
BHL (Biodiversity Heritage Library): Viscaceae
EOL (Encyclopedia of Life): Viscaceae
GBIF (Global Biodiversity Information Facility): Viscaceae
Google: Web - Images - Scholar
iNaturalist: Viscaceae
IPNI (International Plant Names Index): Viscaceae
JSTOR Plant Science: Viscaceae
Mansfeld World Database of Agricultural and Horticultural Crops: Viscaceae
Wikipedia: Viscaceae
Plants of the World Online: Viscaceae
Tropicos: Viscaceae



Copyright: Mark Hyde, Bart Wursten, Petra Ballings and Meg Coates Palgrave, 2014-24

Hyde, M.A., Wursten, B.T., Ballings, P. & Coates Palgrave, M. (2024). Flora of Botswana: Family page: Viscaceae.
https://www.botswanaflora.com/speciesdata/family.php?family_id=233, retrieved 28 March 2024

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