Floral Formula of Solanaceae

We know how important plants are for the existence of human beings. It is also known to us that plants come into existence when a seed grows into the plant itself, this process is called germination. Plants start the process with the transfer of pollen grains from the anther of a male plant to the stigma of a female plant. This transfer can be done by organisms as well as by natural factors like wind and water. There is also a family of flowers that is closely tied with a vegetable. 

Solanaceae is also known as nightshade and its art of the potato family of flowering plants. The Solanaceae family of plants generally has about 3000 species. Most of these species are very important at least for economic reasons as they are commonly used as a source of food as well as for the creation of a drug. In the later stages of the article, we will talk about the floral formula of Solanaceae. 

Floral formula and its meaning

A tree can be very easily symbolically represented with the help of floral formula. Along with this, the floral formula consists of many other things like ovary position, Floral symmetry, etc. Just before we discuss the floral formula of Solanaceae we need to know some more things which are related to it. 

There are many terms and symbols which are used in a floral formula such as the following:

1. The floral formulae will symbolize if it is either bracteate, bracteate or ebracteate

2. The symmetry of the flower is portrayed in such a way that it is expressed in terms of the positions of its floral whorls in consideration of the mother axis. This feature helps in identifying flowers using different symmetries. 

3. The sex of the flower is also symbolized if it is heterosexual or bisexual.

4. After symbolizing the sex, the different floral parts of the flower get symbolized. It starts sequentially from the calyx and ends with gynoecium.

5. Within the above-mentioned floral parts, if two of them are found to be unified then they will be represented within a bracket and if they are free then brackets will not be used. can be above, below, or in front of “G”. 

The floral formula of Solanaceae and its characteristics

The Floral formula of Solanaceae is given below in the diagram.

Solanaceae is a bracteate, actinomorphic as well as bisexual. It has 5 sepals in the calyx with gamosepalous (united). It also has 5 petals, with gamopetalous. 

Some of its characteristics are as follows:

1. Solanaceae as a family has 90 groups and around 3000 species.

2. Among these 3000 species, most of them are either herbs, shrubs, or small trees. 

3. The plants of these species come with a tap root system that too with regular branching.

4. The stems of the plants from this family can be aerial, branched and erect. 

5. The pollination in these types of plants takes place with an insect as the pollinator (entomophilous pollination).   

6. The appearance of fruits in Solanaceae family plants can be in the form of fruits like in tomatoes or capsicum or in the form of berries which can also be seen in Lyceum.

7. The seeds of the plants of this family are generally endospermic and they have 2 cotyledons making them dicots. 

The Economic Importance of the Solanaceae family 

It is widely known that the plants from the Solanaceae family have nutritional as well as medicinal values, some of these are explained below.

1. Most plants have some fruits and products which are consumed by human beings as well as animals because they are a good source of nutrients. Some of these fruits are tomatoes, capsicum, eggplants, etc. 

2. The plants of this family have some medicinal benefits as well. It is commonly used for treating many disorders. These plants produce many alkaloids, some of them are important (nicotine, hyoscyamine, etc.) Tobacco is another product that can be found in these plants. 

3. Some of the flowers from the plants are also used as ornaments. 

Conclusion

Plants are very important for the existence of living beings on earth. This is the reason why researchers tend to do so much in doing more and more research. Solanaceae is a family of plants that are also known as nightshade. They have about 3000 species of plants. A floral representation is a way of symbolising a plant and the plant family. The Floral formula of Solanaceae is given in the above diagram. The branches of these plants are mostly aerial, erect or branched. The seeds of these plants usually have 2 cotyledons which make them dicotyledonous. There are many such plants from which their fruits and flowers are consumed by living beings as they are a good source of nutrients. These plants are also used for medicinal purposes as well as for producing Tobacco.