Umbrella family: characteristics and representatives

The plant world is diverse and fascinating. Exploring it, you can learn a lot of interesting and previously unknown. Consider one of the most common species. Umbrella, or celery, plants are referred to the flower department, the class of dicots and the order of Umbrellas.

Brief information from the section of botany

The umbrella family, whose characteristics are discussed in this section, mainly consists of perennial grasses. However, there is a small number of shrubs. Plants are easy to identify by the characteristic type of inflorescence, consisting of small white, yellow, pink or blue flowers. Umbrellas of inflorescences can be simple or complex. The flowers in them are regular, bisexual, with a barely noticeable cup. Most often, the flower's aureole has 5 petals. In the flower there are 5 stamens and a pestle. Nectar, which attracts insects for pollination, is highlighted by a protruding disc at the base of the column.

The fruit of all representatives is a two-parted seed. When matured, it is retained for a long time on an elongated thread, which grows as a continuation of the pedicel. Botanists call it a pigeon. The walls of the fruit are often filled with essential oils.

The leaves in most cases are pinnately dissected, with a swollen lower part enclosing the stem, like a groove.

Seed propagation

Plants are found everywhere. They prefer a moderate climate, but they are also present in the tropical zone. Many species are resistant to colds. Family Umbrella consists of more than four hundred genera. It has a wide variety of species (3500 species). Favorite places of growth are Europe, Asia, North America.

Plants of the Umbelliferae family have light seeds that are carried over long distances by wind, water streams, animal wool or human clothes. To increase sailing, many seeds have enlarged pterygoid longitudinal ribs.

Those species that are carried by animals and humans have hook-shaped attachments on seeds. This allows you to fasten on wool or clothes and get to great distances from the mother plant.

If the seeds of plants that represent the Umbelliferae family do not have additional adaptations, they are carried along with clumps of soil that adhere to the feet of animals or human shoes.

Economic importance. Vegetables and condiments

It is difficult to overestimate the importance of these plants for agriculture. For example, in large volumes, carrots are grown. Its root vegetables contain useful vitamins and essential oils. Man cultivates this culture, representing the family Umbrella, more than 4 thousand years.

In large quantities, parsley is grown. This plant, in which you can use not only root vegetables, but also young green leaves. The human body receives a lot of vitamin C when using parsley, and its seeds contain useful essential oils.

Family Umbrellas, whose representatives are used as spices and condiments, grow throughout the world. It is coriander, cumin, dill, fennel and others. As a seasoning for soups, meat and salads is widely used lovage. Its taste is similar to celery, but not so spicy and sharp.

Medicinal Herbs

Due to the high content of essential oils and coumarins, plants are widely used in medicine. For example, children are given dill water, infused on the seeds of this plant as a remedy for bloating and colic. Anise is used as an antitussive agent in teas for increasing lactation.

Officially permitted for medical use is the root of the Siberian swot. Based on it, the drug dimidin is produced. Another herbal medicinal plant of the Umbelliferae family is cumin. Its seeds have an antispasmodic effect and are widely used as a gastrointestinal agent.

In Chinese medicine, the qualities of the evangelist are highly valued. This plant has roots and shoots, and seeds. Medications on the basis of the angelica cure gynecological diseases, relieve pain in neuralgia and toothache. Some other types of angelica are used as a hemostatic and sedative.

Folk and official medicine use several types of plant volosushka. They have a beneficial effect on the stomach and pancreas, affect the acidity of the produced juice, improve the composition of bile. In addition, the corolla is used in the case of malaria and tropical fever. It is proved that these plants have antispasmodic, antiseptic, sedative and diuretic effects.

The umbrella family can boast of a large number of different plants that are used to relieve a person's condition.

Decorative plants

Many landscape designers like to use the plants of this family to decorate flower beds and suburban areas. They highly appreciate the decorative properties of the bastards of Mantegazzi and the alpine sycamore.

But a long-term herbaceous umbrella shrimp is used to make decorative products. From its leaves weave rugs, baskets and mats. But this plant is rightly attributed not to decorative species, but to medicinal ones. And in ancient times it was widely used for food, because the roots of a shrimp can be baked, grinded into flour and fried.

Attention! Danger!

Among the umbellate plants are poisonous specimens. An example is the hemlock. Despite the fact that it is a valuable medicinal plant, it can cause severe poisoning. The main problem is that the hemlock grows like a weed, but it is very similar to its edible relatives.

As you can see, plants of the Umbrella family can be very useful for humans. Although among them there are weeds and poisonous species.