Colchicaceae is a family of flowering plants that includes 15 genera with a total of about 285 known species according to Christenhusz and Byng in 2016.
The family is characterized by the presence of colchicine.
Taxonomy
The APG III system, of 2009 (unchanged from the APG systems, of 1998 and 2003), recognizes this family and places it in the order Liliales, in the clade monocots. It is a group of herbaceous perennials with rhizomes or corms.
The Dahlgren system and the Thorne system (1992) also recognized this family, and placed it in order Liliales in superorder Lilianae in subclass Liliidae (monocotyledons) of class Magnoliopsida (angiosperms).
As of June 2026, Plants of the World Online accepted the following genera, arranged below as in the 2007 phylogenetic classification of Vinnersten and Manning:
tribe Burchardieae
Burchardia R.Br.
tribe Uvularieae
Disporum Salisb. (excluding the North American species to the genus Prosartes D.Don, now in the family Liliaceae, Liliales)
Uvularia L.
tribe Tripladenieae
Kuntheria Conran & Clifford
Schelhammera R.Br.
Tripladenia D.Don
tribe Iphigenieae
Camptorrhiza Hutch.
Iphigenia Kunth
tribe Anguillarieae
Baeometra Salisb. ex Endl.
Wurmbea Thunb. (including Neodregea C.H.Wright and Onixotis Raf.)
tribe Colchiceae
Colchicum L. (including Androcymbium Willd., Bulbocodium L. and Merendera Ramond)
Gloriosa L. (including Littonia Hook.)
Hexacyrtis Dinter
Ornithoglossum Salisb.
Sandersonia Hook.
body.skin-vector-2022
Colchicaceae
Burchardieae
