Wolffia spherical [2] ( lat. Wolffia globosa ) is a species of monocotyledonous plants of the genus Wolffia ( Wolffia ) of the Aroidae family ( Araceae ). First described by British botanist William Roxber under the name Lemna globosa Roxb. basionym ; transferred to the Wolffia genus by botanists Cornelis den Hartog and F. van der Place in 1970 [3] [4] .
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 A group of instances of spherical wolfia ( Wolffia globosa ). Larger leaves in the photo belong to plants of the species Mnogorennik ordinary ( Spirodela polyrhiza ) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
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Wolffia globosa ( Roxb. ) Hartog & Plas , 1970 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
It is the smallest flowering plant in the world [5] : according to some sources, its diameter reaches only about 100-200 microns [6] . Wolffia arrhiza ( Wolffia arrhiza ) [7] [8] is also considered a pretender to the “title” of the smallest flower [7 ] , but in reality it is a larger species up to 1.5 mm in size [9] . Plants from the genus Wolffia generally differ in extremely small size and, in addition, they also have the smallest flowers among all flowering [10] .
Content
Distribution and habitat
The natural habitat is tropical and subtropical Asia [11] . The plant is also listed in North and South America [12] .
It grows along the shores of lakes, rivers, ponds and ditches. Prefers areas with a warm climate [12] .
Botanical Description
An aquatic plant floating freely on the surface of the water or a little deeper [12] .
The plant itself is egg-shaped, green in color (in the lower part the color is paler). Size data vary depending on the source [6] [10] ; length can reach 0.4-0.8 mm [12] . Say, thousands of such plants can fit on a human finger [5] .
Flowers appear after the formation of a small indentation of green or white on the edges of the plant. The flowers do not have petals; they cannot be seen with the naked eye. The properties of a flower, such as pollination and seed formation, are being studied by researchers [6] .
Like other wolfia, the tiny spherical wolfia fruit is called “utricle” (from the English - “handbag”) [comm. 1] [5] .
Flowering occurs from June to September; it happens very rarely [12] .
Synonyms
Synonymous names [3] :
- Grantia globosa ( Roxb. ) Griff.
- Lemna globosa roxb. basionym
- Telmatophace cylindracea Welw. ex Hegelm.
- Wolffia schleidenii Miq.
Notes
- ↑ For the conventionality of indicating the class of monocotyledons as a superior taxon for the plant group described in this article, see the APG Systems section of the Monocotyledonous article .
- ↑ Wolffia spherical - Wolffia globosa - Description of the taxon - Plantarium
- ↑ 1 2 Wolffia globosa (Roxb.) Hartog & Plas - The Plant List
- ↑ Tropicos | Name -! Wolffia globosa (Roxb.) Hartog & Plas
- ↑ 1 2 3 What is the smallest flower in the world? (Everyday Mysteries: Fun Science Facts from the Library of Congress)
- ↑ 1 2 3 Rare bloom for Wolffia Globosa, the world's smallest flowering plant - Telegraph
- ↑ The Effect of Sodium Amidotrizoate on the Growth and Metabolism of Wolffia arrhiza (L.) Wimm
- ↑ http://ejournal.sinica.edu.tw/bbas/content/1979/2/bot202-01.PDF
- ↑ Wolffia arrhiza in Flora of North America @ efloras.org
- ↑ 1 2 World'S Smallest Flowering Plant
- ↑ World Checklist of Selected Plant Families: Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
- ↑ 1 2 3 4 5 Wolffia globosa in Flora of China @ efloras.org
- Comments
- ↑ A variety of fetus- achenes .