Dicotyledonous Family: Lamiaceae

Systematic position

Bentham and Hooker placed it in the sub-class Gamopetalae, the series Bicarpellate and Cohort Gentianales. According to Engler, it belongs to the sub-class Metachlamydeae, the sub-order Tubiflorae, the sub-order Verbenineae. Hutchinson places it under the order Lamiales belonging to the phylum Herbaceae.

Distribution

The family contains about 200 genera and 3200 species. They are mostly cosmopolitan, the chief centre of distribution being the Mediterranean region.

General  characters

Habit

Mainly annual or perennial herbs sometimes shurbs rarely trees, stem squre with sweet aromatic oils, hairy.

Leaves

Simple, opposit, exstipulate, entire.

Inflorescence

Dichasial cyme or verticillaster.

Flower

Complete, Zygomorphic, bisexual and hypogynous.

Calyx

Sepals 5, gamosepalous, imbricate, tubular or bell shaped persistent.

Corolla

petals 5, gamopetalous imbricate, bilabiate, upper 2 lipped lower 3, usually differentiated into tube and limb.

Androecium

Stamens 4, with an occasional fifth posterior staminode, epipetalous, didynamous with generally the anterior pair longer, anthers 2-celled, longitudinally dehiscing, connective often well developed, necter-bearing discs often present between the stamens and the ovary.

Gynaecium

Carpels 2, medianly placed, united, ovary usually 2 locular as apparently 4-locular by an inward projection of the ovarian wall, with one ovule in each chamber on axile placentae, style single gynobasic stigma 2 lobed.

Fruit

Typically of 4 nutlets(carcerule).

Seeds

Exalbuminous.

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Identifying character

• Plants herbs, square stem.
• Inflorescence verticillaster.
• Petals bilabiate.
• Stamens 4, didynamous.
• Carpels 2, 4-celled, style gynobasic.

Important Plants of Lamiaceae Family

Economically it is a very important family. Plants described here in different banners are:

Purpose	Plant name and comments	Image
Medicinal	Ocimum americanum L. essential oils used in medicine.
	Ocimum sanctum L. leaf  juice used for cough, cold and fever.
	Mentha arvensis L. stimulant and carminative.
Perfumary	Mentha piperita L. source of pepermint oil.
	Thymus vulgaris L. source of thymol also used in medicine.
Ornamental	Salvia splendens Sellow ex. J.A. Schultes
	Coleus blumei Benth.