Main families

Lamiaceae

Most members of Lamiaceae are annual or perennial herbs, though molecular studies indicate that some of the woody genera formerly placed in Verbenaceae belong in Lamiaceae. Delimited this way, there are 236 genera and 7,280 species in Lamiaceae. The primary centre of distribution of the mint family is the Old World, from the Canary Islands to the Himalayas, with lesser centres in Ethiopia, Madagascar, southern areas of Africa and India, Sri Lanka, and oceanic regions eastward. Centres of distribution in the New World range from the mountains in central Mexico into Argentina and Chile, with secondary centres radiating northward and eastward.

Members of Lamiaceae are commonly recognized by their opposite, usually saw-toothed leaves, often regular or condensed clusters of flowers, and more or less square stems. Their flowers commonly have a style that originates between the deep lobes of the ovary (gynobasic style), uniting the four otherwise essentially distinct lobes of the ovary.

Members of the mint family are characteristically aromatic, and many are cultivated for their ethereal or essential oils, which are used medicinally, for flavouring foods and beverages, and in perfumery. The oils from Marrubium vulgare (horehound) and Salvia sclarea (clary sage) have medicinal value. Mentha cultivars (horticultural varieties) grown commercially for their oils are M. arvensis for menthol, M. gentilis and M. spicata for spearmint, and M. piperita for peppermint. Culinary herbs include Origanum majorana (marjoram), Origanum vulgare (oregano), Ocimum basilicum (sweet basil), Salvia officinalis (sage), Satureja hortensis (savory), Melissa officinalis (lemon balm), Thymus vulgaris (thyme), and Salvia rosmarinus (rosemary). Perfumes are derived from Lavandula angustifolia (lavender).

Border, bedding, and groundcover plants of the mint family include Lavandula, Mentha, and Lamium maculatum (the so-called deadnettle, semievergreen). Ajuga reptans (carpet bugleweed), native to Europe, spreads by stolons (aboveground runners), and A. pyramidalis produces rhizomes to form enlarged colonies vegetatively. Other ornamental mints include numerous species of Salvia, ranging in colour from blue to the orange-red S. splendens (Brazilian scarlet sage). Moluccella laevis (bells of Ireland) develop an unusual green open-faced calyx much used in floral arrangements. Hundreds of named cultivars of Plectranthus, notable for their colourful leaves, are prized as houseplants and for protected outdoor plantings. Wildflowers and cultivated varieties of Monarda (bergamot) are also appreciated for their colour in summer.

Several important timber plants formerly placed in Verbenaceae have been reassigned to Lamiaceae. These include Tectona grandis, the teak native to India, Myanmar (Burma), and Malaysia that is also grown in other warm areas for its valuable wood, and Gmelina arborea, an Old World species now widely cultivated for timber and firewood because of its rapid growth. Vitex altissima (Asian tree) produces commercial timber, and the related V. divaricata produces wood used for shingles and bark used for tanning. The aromatic V. agnus-castus (chaste tree) is a hardy ornamental in warm temperate regions.

Verbenaceae

Verbenaceae, the verbena (also known as vervain) family, contains 31 genera and nearly 920 species, which are distributed mostly in tropical and subtropical South America and Africa. Other places of origin include central Asia, Japan, and islands near India; a few members are native to Europe, Asia Minor, and North America. In Verbenaceae the style is terminal on the ovary, or nearly so, and the ovary is unlobed or only shallowly lobed at the top. The plants are sometimes aromatic, and the fruit is not as consistently specialized as that found in Lamiaceae. The flowers tend to be more loosely aggregated than in the mints.

Important core Verbenaceae include plants such as Lippia (lemon verbena), Lantana camara (common lantana), Petraea (queen’s wreath), and Verbena hybrida, an attractive ground cover.

Plantaginaceae

One of the biggest upheavals in family circumscriptions resulting from the adoption of the APG classification lies in the reorganization of the former Scrophulariales into Lamiales. Molecular studies show that earlier morphologically based delimitations of many families, such as Scrophulariaceae, do not hold up well in a system based on common ancestry. Consequently, many familiar genera long treated as “scrophs” have been placed in families such as Plantaginaceae, the plantain family. The current concept of Plantaginaceae includes Antirrhinum (snapdragon), Veronica (speedwell), Penstemon (beardtongue), Linaria (toadflax), and Digitalis (foxglove), as well as Plantago (plantain) and the aquatic genera Hippuris and Callitriche. The family so defined is entirely herbaceous and quite diverse in floral form and in the reduction of floral parts, with about 90 genera and 1,900 species. Plantago, for instance, has a single basal ovule, whereas many of the traditional “scroph” genera have numerous seeds on an axial placentation. The foxgloves Digitalis lanata and D. purpurea are the sources of digoxin and digitoxin, respectively; these drugs are important in the treatment of irregular heart rhythms.

Scrophulariaceae

Scrophulariaceae, the figwort family, includes some 65 genera and 1,800 species. These herbs or shrubs include genera such as Verbascum (mullein, with about 360 species), Scrophularia (200 species), and Buddleja (butterfly bush, with 125 species). Some of these, such as the mulleins, have the same number of stamens as petals.

The genera Eremophila (215 species) and Myoporum (about 30 species) consist of trees and shrubs native to Australia and the Pacific. The related tree Bontia daphnoides is an ornamental species from the Caribbean region. The members of these three genera were formerly placed in Myoporaceae and are characterized by strongly bilaterally symmetric flowers. Most have leaves with pellucid dots.