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{{Taxobox
| color = lightgreen
| name = Betulaceae
| image = Alnus glutinosa.jpg
| image_width = 250px
| image_caption = [[Black Alder]] (''Alnus glutinosa'')
| regnum = [[Plantae]]
| divisio = [[Flowering plant|Magnoliophyta]]
| classis = [[Magnoliopsida]]
| ordo = [[Fagales]]
| familia = '''Betulaceae'''
| familia_authority = [[John Edward Gray|Gray]]
| subdivision_ranks = Genera
| subdivision =
''[[Alder|Alnus]]'' - Alder<br/>
''[[Birch|Betula]]'' - Birch<br/>
''[[Hornbeam|Carpinus]]'' - Hornbeam<br/>
''[[Hazel|Corylus]]'' - Hazel<br/>
''[[Ostrya]]'' - Hop-hornbeam<br/>
''[[Ostryopsis]]'' - Hazel-hornbeam
}}
'''Betulaceae''', or the '''Birch Family''', includes six genera of [[deciduous]] [[nut (fruit)|nut]]-bearing [[tree]]s and [[shrub]]s, including the [[birch]]es, [[alder]]s, [[hazel]]s, [[hornbeam]]s and [[hop-hornbeam]]s, numbering about 130 species. They are mostly natives of the temperate [[Northern Hemisphere]], with a few species reaching the [[Southern Hemisphere]] in the [[Andes]] in [[South America]].
In the past, the family was often divided into two families, Betulaceae (''Alnus, Betula'') and Corylaceae (the rest); however, recent treatments, including the [[Angiosperm Phylogeny Group]], have renamed these two groups as subfamilies within the Betulaceae- [[Betuloideae]] and [[Coryloideae]].
The closest relatives of the Betulaceae are believed to be the [[Casuarinaceae]], or the She-Oaks.
==Evolutionary History==
The Betulaceae are believed to have originated at the end of the [[Cretaceous]] period (c. 70 million years ago) in [[Sichuan Province| central China]]. This region at the time would have had a [[Mediterranean]] type climate due to the proximity of the [[Tethys Sea]], which covered parts of present-day [[Tibet]] and [[Xinjiang]] into the early [[Tertiary]] period. This point of origin is supported by the fact that all six genera and 52 species are native to this region, many of those being [[endemism|endemic]]. It is believed that all six modern genera had diverged fully by the [[Oligocene]], with all genera in the family (with the exception of [[Ostryopsis]]) having a [[fossil record]] stretching back at least 20 million years from the present.
==Uses==
[[Image:Corylus avellana.jpg|left|thumb|''Corylus avellana'' foliage and nuts]]
The [[Common Hazel]] ''Corylus avellana'' and the [[Filbert]] ''Corylus maxima'' are important [[orchard]] plants, grown for their edible [[nut (fruit)|nuts]].
The other genera include a number of popular [[ornamental plant|ornamental trees]], widely planted in parks and large gardens; several of the birches are particularly valued for their smooth, brightly coloured [[bark]].
The [[wood]] is generally hard, tough and heavy, hornbeams particularly so; several species were of significant importance in the past where very hard wood capable of withstanding heavy wear was required, such as for [[cartwheel]]s, [[water wheel]]s, [[gear|cog wheels]], [[tool]] handles, chopping boards and wooden pegs. In most of these uses wood has now been replaces by [[metal]] or other man-made materials.
==References==
*Chen, Z.D., Manchester, S.R., & Sun, H.Y., 1999. ''Phylogeny and evolution of the Betulaceae as inferred from DNA sequences, morphology, and palaeobotany''. American Journal of Botany, 86: 1168-1181.
[[Category:Fagales]]
[[Category:Betulaceae| ]]
[[Category:Plant families]]
| color = lightgreen
| name = Betulaceae
| image = Alnus glutinosa.jpg
| image_width = 250px
| image_caption = [[Black Alder]] (''Alnus glutinosa'')
| regnum = [[Plantae]]
| divisio = [[Flowering plant|Magnoliophyta]]
| classis = [[Magnoliopsida]]
| ordo = [[Fagales]]
| familia = '''Betulaceae'''
| familia_authority = [[John Edward Gray|Gray]]
| subdivision_ranks = Genera
| subdivision =
''[[Alder|Alnus]]'' - Alder<br/>
''[[Birch|Betula]]'' - Birch<br/>
''[[Hornbeam|Carpinus]]'' - Hornbeam<br/>
''[[Hazel|Corylus]]'' - Hazel<br/>
''[[Ostrya]]'' - Hop-hornbeam<br/>
''[[Ostryopsis]]'' - Hazel-hornbeam
}}
'''Betulaceae''', or the '''Birch Family''', includes six genera of [[deciduous]] [[nut (fruit)|nut]]-bearing [[tree]]s and [[shrub]]s, including the [[birch]]es, [[alder]]s, [[hazel]]s, [[hornbeam]]s and [[hop-hornbeam]]s, numbering about 130 species. They are mostly natives of the temperate [[Northern Hemisphere]], with a few species reaching the [[Southern Hemisphere]] in the [[Andes]] in [[South America]].
In the past, the family was often divided into two families, Betulaceae (''Alnus, Betula'') and Corylaceae (the rest); however, recent treatments, including the [[Angiosperm Phylogeny Group]], have renamed these two groups as subfamilies within the Betulaceae- [[Betuloideae]] and [[Coryloideae]].
The closest relatives of the Betulaceae are believed to be the [[Casuarinaceae]], or the She-Oaks.
==Evolutionary History==
The Betulaceae are believed to have originated at the end of the [[Cretaceous]] period (c. 70 million years ago) in [[Sichuan Province| central China]]. This region at the time would have had a [[Mediterranean]] type climate due to the proximity of the [[Tethys Sea]], which covered parts of present-day [[Tibet]] and [[Xinjiang]] into the early [[Tertiary]] period. This point of origin is supported by the fact that all six genera and 52 species are native to this region, many of those being [[endemism|endemic]]. It is believed that all six modern genera had diverged fully by the [[Oligocene]], with all genera in the family (with the exception of [[Ostryopsis]]) having a [[fossil record]] stretching back at least 20 million years from the present.
==Uses==
[[Image:Corylus avellana.jpg|left|thumb|''Corylus avellana'' foliage and nuts]]
The [[Common Hazel]] ''Corylus avellana'' and the [[Filbert]] ''Corylus maxima'' are important [[orchard]] plants, grown for their edible [[nut (fruit)|nuts]].
The other genera include a number of popular [[ornamental plant|ornamental trees]], widely planted in parks and large gardens; several of the birches are particularly valued for their smooth, brightly coloured [[bark]].
The [[wood]] is generally hard, tough and heavy, hornbeams particularly so; several species were of significant importance in the past where very hard wood capable of withstanding heavy wear was required, such as for [[cartwheel]]s, [[water wheel]]s, [[gear|cog wheels]], [[tool]] handles, chopping boards and wooden pegs. In most of these uses wood has now been replaces by [[metal]] or other man-made materials.
==References==
*Chen, Z.D., Manchester, S.R., & Sun, H.Y., 1999. ''Phylogeny and evolution of the Betulaceae as inferred from DNA sequences, morphology, and palaeobotany''. American Journal of Botany, 86: 1168-1181.
[[Category:Fagales]]
[[Category:Betulaceae| ]]
[[Category:Plant families]]
