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Family:
Boraginaceae (forget-me-not and borage family)
[= Hydrophyllaceae] Life
> eukaryotes >
Archaeoplastida >
Chloroplastida
>
Charophyta > Streptophytina > Plantae (land plants)
> Tracheophyta (vascular plants) > Euphyllophyta > Lignophyta (woody plants)
> Spermatophyta (seed plants) > Angiospermae (flowering
plants) > Eudicotyledons > unassigned to order
About 148 genera and 2740 species, widespread in temperate
and tropical regions of the world, with 17 genera and 107 species native to
southern Africa, an additional four genera and 17 species that are naturalised,
and an additional six genera and 17 species that are cultivated in the region.
Genera native to southern Africa
List from Retief (2000).
Afrotysonia Three species, all African,
two of which are native
to southern Africa. |
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Anchusa
About 35 species, native to Europe, North Africa and west Asia. Two species
are native to southern Africa and one is naturalised in the region. |
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Codon
Two species, endemic to southern Africa: Codon royenii
and Codon schenckii. Previously placed in the Hydrophyllaceae |
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Coldenia
Coldenia procumbens is native to southern Africa (Limpopo, Mpumalanga,
Zimbabwe and Mozambique). See
Flora of Zimbabwe. |
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Cordia
(saucer-berry genus) About 250-300 species, native to tropical regions, with 12
species native to southern Africa and a further six species that are cultivated
in the region. |
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Cynoglossum About 75 species, native to temperate and
subtropical regions, with 11 species native to southern Africa,
one species that is naturalised in the region, and a further species
that is cultivated in the region. |
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Echiostachys Three species, endemic to the Western Cape. |
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Echium About
60 species, mainly on Madeira, the Azores and Canary Islands but also
native to Africa and Asia. One species is native and two species are naturalised
in southern Africa. |
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Ehretia About 75 species, native to the tropics, with
seven species native to southern Africa and a further species that is
cultivated in the region. |
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Heliotropium About
250 species, native to tropical, subtropical and warm temperate regions,
with 18 species native to southern Africa, four species naturalised, and
one species that is cultivated in the region. |
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Hilsenbergia
[= Bourreria] Two species native to southern Africa
(specifically Mozambique) - Hilsenbergia orbicularis and
Hilsenbergia petiolaris. See
Flora of Mozambique. |
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Lappula About
50 species, native mainly to temperate Europe and Asia, North America and
Australia, but with one species, Lappula capensis,
native to
southern Africa. Lappula heteracantha is naturalised in the region. |
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Lithospermum About
45 species, native mainly to temperate regions, with seven species native
to
southern Africa. |
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Lobostemon Twenty-nine
species, endemic to Northern, Western and Eastern Cape. |
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| Myosotis
(Forget-me-not
genus) About 50 species, worldwide but mainly in
temperate regions of the Old World, with three species native to southern
Africa, three species naturalised, and a further two species that are
cultivated in southern Africa. |
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Trichodesma About
45 species, native to tropical and subtropical regions from Africa to Asia
and Australia, with five species native to southern Africa. |
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Wellstedia
Three
of the four species are native to Somalia, Socotra and Ethiopia. The other
species, Wellstedia dinteri, is native to southern Africa. |
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Genera naturalised in southern Africa
Amsinckia About
15 species, native mainly to Central America. Amsinckia calycina and
Amsinckia menziesii have become naturalised in southern Africa. |
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Buglossoides
The
15 species are native to Europe and Asia.
Buglossoides arvensis
is
a naturalised species in southern Africa.
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Phacelia
About 150 species, native mainly to western North America.
Phacelia artemisioides is native to Argentina and has become
naturalised in southern Africa (Free State and Eastern Cape). Phacelia
was previously placed in the Hydrophyllaceae. |
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Rochelia About
20 species, native to Eurasia. Rochelia disperma
naturalised in the
Western Cape. |
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Other genera, cultivated in
southern Africa
List from Glen (2002). The species name is provided in
genera that have only one species represented in southern Africa.
Argusia argentea
Native from tropical Africa through to the Pacific. |
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Borago officinalis (Borage) Believed to be
native to the Middle East but ocurs naturally in southern Europe and the
Mediterranean region. Grown as a garden herb. The leaves and flowers are
used more for decorating drinks (e.g. gin) and food (e.g. salads) than for
consumption. Flowers are sometimes crystalised and used to decorate puddings
and cakes. Oil is extracted from the seeds and used as a dietary supplement
(termed "starflower oil") because it contains very high levels (21%) of
unsaturated gamma-linolenic acid (GLA), which is an essential fatty acid. |
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Omphalodes linifolia
Indigenous from Portugal to France. |
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Moltkia petraea Indigenous
from Serbia to Greece.
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Mysotidium hortensia (Chatham Island
forget-me-not) Native to New Zealand. |
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Symphytum officinale
(Comfrey) |
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Publications
- Glen, H.F. 2002. Cultivated Plants of Southern Africa. Jacana, Johannesburg.
- Martins, E.S. 1990. Boraginaceae. Flora zambesiaca 7: 59–110.
- Martins, E.S. 1993. Boraginaceae. Flora de Moçambique 112: 1–75.
- Retief, E. 2000. Boraginaceae. Seed Plants of Southern Africa (ed. O.A.
Leistner). Strelitzia 10: 178-183. National Botanical Institute, Pretoria.
- Retief, E. & Van Wyk, A.E. 1997. Palynology of southern African Boraginaceae:
the genera Lobostemon, Echiostachys and Echium. Grana 36: 271–278.
- Verdcourt, B. 1991. Boraginaceae. Flora of Tropical East Africa: 1–124.
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