Marattiaceae
Marattiaceae is a family of the order Marattiales of the sub-class Eusporangiatae of the class Filicinae of the Pteridophyta Division (phyllum) of the plant kingdom.CH
Marattiaceae (from the genus Marattia, named in honor of Maratti, Italian botanist). Marattia Family. Fig. 1. Stately tropical ferns with thickened, often erect, stems: leaves usually very large, from nearly entire to several times pinnate, circinate, inclosed when young by the prominent stipules: indusium present or absent: sporangia in sori on the under face of the leaf, either separate or united into a capsule-like body (synangium); the walls several cells in thickness; annulus wanting, or greatly reduced; dehiscence by clefts, pores, or, in case of the “synangia,” first by valves and then by slits: prothallium a green heart-shaped thallus on the surface of the soil, sometimes branched.CH
Four genera and about 23 species are found in tropical regions, but extend into the south temperate zone. The fern-like habit, the prominent stipules, the thick-walled sporangia borne in sori or synangia, the absence of a well-developed annulus, and the green thalloid emersed prothallia, are important characteristics. The family is probably very old geologically.CH
The thick, starchy stem of Angiopteris and some Marattias are locally used for food. The fleshy stipules of Marattia fraxinea are eaten; the spicy leaves of some species are used to season food. The slime from the stipules of M. Douglasii is used medicinally by the Hawaiians.CH
Three genera are known to American horticulture and are occasionally grown as ornamental greenhouse plants: Angiopteris, Danaea, and Marattia, representing less than a half-dozen cultivated species.CH
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References
- Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture, by L. H. Bailey, MacMillan Co., 1963
External links
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