Rhipogonaceae
Encyclopedia
Rhipogonaceae is the botanical name
of a family of flowering plants. The family is confined to eastern Australia
, New Zealand
, and New Guinea
. Rhipogonaceae is composed entirely of woody vines in the genus Rhipogonum (sometimes Ripogonum). Until recently this family was included in Smilacaceae
, and its separation has been a matter of some debate. However, both the APG system
and APG II system
do recognize such a family and place it in the order Liliales
, and the clade monocots. It differs from the closely related Smilacaceae only in that Rhipogonaceae is a twining vine that lacks tendrils, its seeds contain starch, the flowers are hermaphroditic, and the five sided anthers are longer than the filaments.
. In Australia and New Zealand, Rhipogonum berries are known foods for some species of mammals and birds.
Supplejack (R. scandens) has a fibrous root rich in starch
and used as a beer
flavoring. Known to the Māori of New Zealand as Kariao (Kareao or Karewao) and Pirita, a concentrated decoction of the supplejack root has a sweetish sarsaparilla-like scent and flavour and is soothing to the throat. It was also useful in treating bowel complaints, fever, rheumatism and skin diseases. The edible small berry is dry and insipid but the cooked young shoots reportedly taste like fresh green beans. The sap is also edible.
, Rhipogonum containing only six species. A complete species
list with distributions is given below.
Botanical name
A botanical name is a formal scientific name conforming to the International Code of Botanical Nomenclature and, if it concerns a plant cultigen, the additional cultivar and/or Group epithets must conform to the International Code of Nomenclature for Cultivated Plants...
of a family of flowering plants. The family is confined to eastern Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
, and New Guinea
New Guinea
New Guinea is the world's second largest island, after Greenland, covering a land area of 786,000 km2. Located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, it lies geographically to the east of the Malay Archipelago, with which it is sometimes included as part of a greater Indo-Australian Archipelago...
. Rhipogonaceae is composed entirely of woody vines in the genus Rhipogonum (sometimes Ripogonum). Until recently this family was included in Smilacaceae
Smilacaceae
Smilacaceae, the greenbrier family, is a family of flowering plants. Up to some decades ago the genera now included in family Smilacaceae were often assigned to a more broadly defined family Liliaceae, but for the past twenty to thirty years most botanists have accepted Smilacaceae as a distinct...
, and its separation has been a matter of some debate. However, both the APG system
APG system
The APG system of plant classification is the first, now obsolete, version of a modern, mostly molecular-based, system of plant taxonomy that was published in 1998 by the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group. It was superseded in 2003 by a revision, the APG II system, and then in 2009 by a further...
and APG II system
APG II system
The APG II system of plant classification is the second, now obsolete, version of a modern, mostly molecular-based, system of plant taxonomy that was published in April 2003 by the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group. It was a revision of the first APG system, published in 1998, and was superseded in 2009...
do recognize such a family and place it in the order Liliales
Liliales
Liliales is an order of monocotyledonous flowering plants. This order of necessity includes the family Liliaceae, but both the family and the order have had a widely disputed history, with the circumscription varying greatly from one taxonomist to another...
, and the clade monocots. It differs from the closely related Smilacaceae only in that Rhipogonaceae is a twining vine that lacks tendrils, its seeds contain starch, the flowers are hermaphroditic, and the five sided anthers are longer than the filaments.
Uses
Some species of this family are used for constructing baskets, ropes, and fish traps by indigenous peoplesIndigenous peoples
Indigenous peoples are ethnic groups that are defined as indigenous according to one of the various definitions of the term, there is no universally accepted definition but most of which carry connotations of being the "original inhabitants" of a territory....
. In Australia and New Zealand, Rhipogonum berries are known foods for some species of mammals and birds.
Supplejack (R. scandens) has a fibrous root rich in starch
Starch
Starch or amylum is a carbohydrate consisting of a large number of glucose units joined together by glycosidic bonds. This polysaccharide is produced by all green plants as an energy store...
and used as a beer
Beer
Beer is the world's most widely consumed andprobably oldest alcoholic beverage; it is the third most popular drink overall, after water and tea. It is produced by the brewing and fermentation of sugars, mainly derived from malted cereal grains, most commonly malted barley and malted wheat...
flavoring. Known to the Māori of New Zealand as Kariao (Kareao or Karewao) and Pirita, a concentrated decoction of the supplejack root has a sweetish sarsaparilla-like scent and flavour and is soothing to the throat. It was also useful in treating bowel complaints, fever, rheumatism and skin diseases. The edible small berry is dry and insipid but the cooked young shoots reportedly taste like fresh green beans. The sap is also edible.
Species
It consists of only one genusGenus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
, Rhipogonum containing only six species. A complete species
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
list with distributions is given below.
- Rhipogonum albumRhipogonum albumRipogonum album known as the White Supplejack is a common rainforest vine, found in eastern Australia. The leaves are identified by the longitudinal venation. A stout climber, with stems up to 15 metres long. Flowers are greenish white, and the fruit is a round red berry...
R. Br. -- (distributed in Australia & New Guinea) - Rhipogonum brevifolium Conran & Cliff. -- (distributed in Australia)
- Rhipogonum discolor F. Muell. -- (distributed in Australia)
- Rhipogonum elseyanum F. Muell. -- (distributed in Australia)
- Rhipogonum fawcettianum F. Muell. Ex Benth. -- (distributed in Australia)
- Rhipogonum scandens J.R. & G. Forst. -- (distributed in New Zealand)
Spelling
The name is based on the generic name and there is no close agreement on how this is spelled:- Much of the literature uses the spelling Ripogonum for the generic name, with Ripogonaceae as the spelling of the family name. That spelling is used by the APG systemAPG systemThe APG system of plant classification is the first, now obsolete, version of a modern, mostly molecular-based, system of plant taxonomy that was published in 1998 by the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group. It was superseded in 2003 by a revision, the APG II system, and then in 2009 by a further...
of 1998 and by the site by Watson & Dallwitz. - The spelling Rhipogonum is listed on the website kept by prof Reveal as the correct spelling for the generic name, with the family name spelled as Rhipogonaceae. The APG II systemAPG II systemThe APG II system of plant classification is the second, now obsolete, version of a modern, mostly molecular-based, system of plant taxonomy that was published in April 2003 by the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group. It was a revision of the first APG system, published in 1998, and was superseded in 2009...
(with Reveal as a co-publishing author) uses this spelling.
External links
- Ripogonaceae in L. Watson and M.J. Dallwitz (1992 onwards). The families of flowering plants: descriptions, illustrations, identification, information retrieval. Version: 9th March 2006. http://delta-intkey.com
- NCBI Taxonomy Browser
- Plants for a Future Database: description of uses of Ripogonum