Photos: Davies, N.

Scutellaria oligodonta Juz. Photo: S. Landrein

Scutellaria mesostegia Juz. Photo J. Osbourne

Subfamily

V. Subfam. Scutellarioideae (Dumort.) Caruel (1884).

Description

Perennial (rarely annual) herbs, subshrubs or shrubs, usually non-aromatic (a few species reported to be aromatic); leaves opposite, petiolate, entire, toothed or rarely pinnatifid; inflorescence of decussately or helically arranged flowers in axillary or terminal, often secund racemes or solitary in axils of foliage leaves; bracts present, reduced or not; bracteoles present or absent; calyx 2-lipped, accrescent, lips entire, rounded, becoming appressed at maturity, enclosing nutlets until posterior lip detaches to release them (or rarely the calyx indehiscent, inflated), posterior lip usually folded to produce a scutellum; corolla white, pink, blue, yellow or red, zygomorphic, tube straight or curved, often basally geniculate, usually 2-lipped, 4-lobed (3/1), with galeate posterior lip and unlobed anterior lip (less often weakly zygomorphic with 4 subequal, ± spreading lobes); stamens usually included, thecae parallel to divergent, anther slit usually ciliate, anterior anthers dimidiate due to abortion of outer theca; pollen suprareticulate or rarely psilate; ovary-lobes separate both above and below the style attachment (1/3 - 2/3 way to base of ovary) or rarely the style gynobasic; disk well developed, often with anterior side swollen at the base of a peg-like gynophore; nutlets dry, usually ellipsoid to obovoid or subglobose, pubescent or glabrous, variously sculptured (often tuberculate), attachment-scar lateral or rarely basal; endosperm absent; embryo usually bent with an incumbent radicle, more rarely bent at right angles or slightly curved.  2n = 12-88 (most frequently 20, 22, 24, 32, 34).  About 360 spp, subcosmopolitan but poorly represented in moist tropical lowlands.  Paton (1990) distinguished subgenus Scutellaria, with one-sided inflorescences in which flowers are subtended by leaves or leaf-like bracts, from subgenus Apeltanthus Juz, with four-sided inflorescences and cucullate bracts.

Distribution

Native to:

10 Northern Europe
11 Middle Europe
12 Southwestern Europe
13 Southeastern Europe
14 Eastern Europe
20 Northern Africa
21 Macaronesia
22 West Tropical Africa
23 West-Central Tropical Africa
24 Northeast Tropical Africa
25 East Tropical Africa
26 South Tropical Africa
30 Siberia
31 Russian Far East
32 Middle Asia
33 Caucasus
34 Western Asia
35 Arabian Peninsula
36 China
37 Mongolia
38 Eastern Asia
40 Indian Subcontinent
41 Indo-China
42 Malesia
43 Papuasia
50 Australia
51 New Zealand
70 Subarctic America
71 Western Canada
72 Eastern Canada
73 Northwestern U.S.A.
74 North-Central U.S.A.
75 Northeastern U.S.A.
76 Southwestern U.S.A.
77 South-Central U.S.A.
78 Southeastern U.S.A.
79 Mexico
80 Central America
81 Caribbean
82 Northern South America
83 Western South America
84 Brazil
85 Southern South America
90 Subantarctic Islands

Doubtfully present in:

27 Southern Africa

Synonyms

Cassida Ség., Pl. Veron. 3: 130 (1754).

Hastifolia Ehrh., Beitr. Naturk. 4: 148 (1789).

Perilomia Kunth in F.W.H.von Humboldt, A.J.A.Bonpland & C.S.Kunth, Nov. Gen. Sp. 2: 326 (1818).

Theresa Clos in C.Gay, Fl. Chil. 4: 496 (1849).

Salazaria Torr. in W.H.Emory, Rep. U.S. Mex. Bound. 2: 133 (1858).

Cruzia Phil., Anales Univ. Chile 90: 558 (1895).

Anaspis Rech.f., Notizbl. Bot. Gart. Berlin-Dahlem 15: 630 (1941).

Harlanlewisia Epling, Amer. J. Bot. 42: 436 (1955).

Publication

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Species found in RBG Kew living collections

1952-63602 Scutellaria alpina L.  CAMB  F 154 0614 
1960-11701 Scutellaria alpina L.  LEMP  F 154 0714   :  154 0914 
1970-1001 Scutellaria altissima L. N CLUJ  F 157 24 
1977-226 Scutellaria balearica Barcelo N CAMP  F 155 02 TROUGH  :  ALP_H 05   :  ALP_N HH FRAME8  :  ALP_N TROUGH GRAHAM
1998-2754 Scutellaria diffusa Benth. N ERNN 6923 F 154 0706 
1986-4833 Scutellaria galericulata  EDIN  F JOD SEED 
1986-4834 Scutellaria hastifolia L.  EDIN  F JOD SEED 
1969-52056 Scutellaria indica L. var. parvifolia (Makino) Makino    F JOD SEED 
1994-215 Scutellaria integrifolia L.  UNOH  F JOD SEED 
1987-2767 Scutellaria javanica Jungh.  DUFR 42 F JOD SEED 
2001-4236 Scutellaria kurokawae  NASU   154 0907 
1986-4837 Scutellaria minor L.  EDIN  F JOD SEED 
1986-3913 Scutellaria minor L. N BELW  F JOD SEED 
1954-10615 Scutellaria mollis R.Br. N MELV  F JOD SEED 
1994-213 Scutellaria nervosa Pursh N CANP  F JOD SEED 
1990-611 Scutellaria racemosa Pers. N HRLE  F JOD SEED T4 FRAME5
1995-2203 Scutellaria schweinfurthii Briq. subsp. paucifolia (Baker) Paton N GGHP 3905 F JOD SEED 
1986-4714 Scutellaria scordiifolia Fisch.ex Schrenk  INEB  F JOD SEED 
1982-257 Scutellaria tournefortii Benth.  BLON  F 157 24 
1984-8158 Scutellaria violacea Heyne ex Benth. N PONS 408 F JOD SEED 
1986-5215 Scutellaria violacea Heyne ex Benth.  BERG  F JOD SEED 

Image resource

© Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew