Name: Polygonaceae
Meaning of Name:
Polygonaceae, from Ancient Greek πολύγονον (polúgonon, ‘knotweed’), from πολύς (‘many’) + γόνυ (‘knee’) or γόνος (‘offspring’, a reference to the seeds) + Latin -āceae (the feminine plural of -āceus, ‘resembling’, a suffix used to form the taxonomic family names of plants, algae, bacteria, and fungi)
Common Names:
The knotweed or smartweed-buckwheat family
Botanical Information:
The Polygonaceae family comprises 48 genera and 1200 species, most of which are perennial herbs. Some of the most prolific weeds are within this family — Japanese knotweed (Reynoutria japonica) being one example. Several species are popular foodsources, such as buckwheat, rhubarb and the sorrels. Others are ornamentals or useful timber.
The defining botanical characterisitcs of Polygonaceae species concern leaf and flower morphologies particular to them.
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