The Papaveraceae (), informally called the poppy family, are an economically important family of about 42 genera and approximately 775 known species of flowering plants in the order Ranunculales. The family is cosmopolitan, occurring in temperate and subtropical climates (mostly in the northern hemisphere) like Eastern Asia as well as California in North America. It is almost unknown in the tropics. Most are herbaceous plants, but a few are shrubs and small trees. The family currently includes two groups that have been considered to be separate families: Fumariaceae and Pteridophyllaceae. Papaver is the classical name for poppy in Latin.
Description
Papaveraceae are known for diverse and colorful flowers with distinctive sepals. The plants may be annual, biennial, or perennial. Usually herbaceous, a few species form shrubs or evergreen trees. All parts contain a well-developed system of latex ducts called "laticifers", that produce milky latex, a watery white, yellow or red juice.
The leaves are alternate or sometimes whorled and have petioles and no stipules. They are usually lobed or pinnatifid (i.e. consisting of several not entirely separate leaflets), or much divided.
The plants are hermaphroditic and pollinated mostly by insects (entomophilous), but nectaries are lacking. A few are wind pollinated (anemophilous). There is a distinct calyx and corolla, except in Macleaya where the corolla is lacking. The flowers are medium-sized or large. The terminal flowers are solitary in many species. In others the terminal inflorescence is cymose or racemose. The flowers are odourless and regular.
There are many stamens, mostly 16 to 60, arranged in two separate whorls, the outer one with stamens alternating with petals, the inner one opposite, or numerous in the subfamily Papaveroideae. The gynoecium consists of a compound pistil with 2 to 100 carpels. The ovary is superior and unilocular. The ovary is either stemless (sessile) or on a short stem (stipitate)....
