Oxalis
Also known as shamrock, wood sorrel genus, wood sorrels, sorrels
Oxalis ( , ) is a large genus of flowering plants in the wood-sorrel family, Oxalidaceae, comprising over 550 species. The genus occurs throughout most of the world, except for the polar areas; species diversity is particularly rich in tropical Brazil, Mexico, and South Africa.
Species
Oxalis
GENUS
- KingdomPlantae
- PhylumTracheophyta
- ClassMagnoliopsida
- OrderOxalidales
- FamilyOxalidaceae
General: temperate areas. The largest genus is Oxalis (ca. 500 species). Use: The leaves of some Oxalis species are used in salads. Appearance: , and the terminalleaflet is reduced to a bristle-like mucro. Oxalis usually has Fruit: at the base (some Oxalis and Biophytum species), which results
via GBIF · Kew POWO
Article
10 sectionsContents
- Description
- Taxonomy
- Ecology
- Uses
- As food
- Other uses
- As ornamental plants
- Selected species
- References
- Further reading
Oxalis ( , ) is a large genus of flowering plants in the wood-sorrel family, Oxalidaceae, comprising over 550 species. The genus occurs throughout most of the world, except for the polar areas; species diversity is particularly rich in tropical Brazil, Mexico, and South Africa.
Many of the species are known as wood-sorrels (also as wood sorrels or woodsorrels) as they have an acidic taste reminiscent of the sorrel proper (Rumex acetosa), which is not closely related. Some species are called yellow sorrels or pink sorrels after the colour of their flowers instead. Other species are colloquially known as false shamrocks, and some called sourgrasses. For the genus as a whole, the term oxalises is also used. Many plants in this genus contain oxalic acid; the acid being named after the genus Oxalis.