Subclass Asteridae (Noun)
Meaning
A group of mostly sympetalous herbs and some trees and shrubs mostly with 2 fused carpels; contains 43 families including Campanulales; Solanaceae; Scrophulariaceae; Labiatae; Verbenaceae; Rubiaceae; Compositae; sometimes classified as a superorder.
Classification
Nouns denoting plants.
Examples
- The subclass Asteridae contains many common garden plants such as tomatoes and petunias that have economic and aesthetic importance.
- Plants belonging to the subclass Asteridae have highly modified flower structures which play a key role in attracting pollinators.
- Taxonomists use characteristics like ovary structure and number of carpels to differentiate the subclass Asteridae from other subclasses of flowering plants.
- Members of the subclass Asteridae can be distinguished from those in the subclass Rosidae based on their leaf and stem morphology.
- Evolutionary biologists are particularly interested in studying the subclass Asteridae to gain insights into the rapid radiation of these plant lineages.