Smilax
Smilax aspera in fruit
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae Division: Magnoliophyta Class: Liliopsida Order: Liliales Family: Smilacaceae Genus: Smilax
Species
See list of Smilax species Image File history File links Download high resolution version (960x1280, 279 KB) File links The following pages link to this file: Smilacaceae Smilax ... Scientific classification or biological classification is a method by which biologists group and categorize species of organisms. ... Divisions Green algae Chlorophyta Charophyta Land plants (embryophytes) Non-vascular plants (bryophytes) Marchantiophyta—liverworts Anthocerotophyta—hornworts Bryophyta—mosses Vascular plants (tracheophytes) †Rhyniophyta—rhyniophytes †Zosterophyllophyta—zosterophylls Lycopodiophyta—clubmosses †Trimerophytophyta—trimerophytes Pteridophyta—ferns and horsetails Seed plants (spermatophytes) †Pteridospermatophyta—seed ferns Pinophyta—conifers Cycadophyta—cycads Ginkgophyta—ginkgo Gnetophyta—gnetae Magnoliophyta—flowering plants... It has been suggested that Angiospermae, and Anthophyta be merged into this article or section. ... Hemerocallis flower, with three flower parts in each whorl Wheat, an economically important monocot The monocotyledons or Monocots are a group of flowering plants, (angiosperms) dominating great parts of the earth. ... Families Alstroemeriaceae Campynemataceae Colchicaceae Corsiaceae Liliaceae Luzuriagaceae Melanthiaceae Philesiaceae Ripogonaceae Smilacaceae Liliales is an order of monocotyledonous flowering plants. ... Genera Heterosmilax Nemexia - Carrion-flowers Petermannia Smilax - Greenbriers The Smilacaceae is a plant family formerly included in the Liliaceae (lily family) but now regarded as a distinct segregate family, allied to the Dioscoreaceae (yam family). ... This is a listing of all known Smilax species. ...

Smilax is a genus of about 200 species of climbing flowering plants, many of which are woody and/or thorny in the monocotyledon family Smilacaceae, native throughout the tropical and warm temperate regions of the world. Common names include Catbrier, Greenbrier, Prickly-ivy, Sarsaparilla, Sarsparilla and Smilax. Occasionally, the non-woody species, like S. herbacea, are placed in the genus Nemexia. Smilax gets its name from the Greek myth Krokus/Crocus and the nymph Smilax.^[1] Though this myth has numerous forms, it always centers around the unfulfilled and tragic love of a mortal man who is turned into a flower, and a woodland nymph who is transformed into a brambly vine. It has been suggested that Angiospermae, and Anthophyta be merged into this article or section. ... Hemerocallis flower, with three flower parts in each whorl Wheat, an economically important monocot The monocotyledons or Monocots are a group of flowering plants, (angiosperms) dominating great parts of the earth. ... Genera Heterosmilax Nemexia - Carrion-flowers Petermannia Smilax - Greenbriers The Smilacaceae is a plant family formerly included in the Liliaceae (lily family) but now regarded as a distinct segregate family, allied to the Dioscoreaceae (yam family). ... Greenbrier is the name of some places in the United States of America: Greenbrier, Arkansas Greenbrier, Tennessee Greenbrier County, West Virginia Greenbrier is a type of plant. ... Species Nemexia biltmoreana Small Nemexia ecirrata (Engelman. ... In Classical mythology, Krokus was a mortal man who, unhappy with his love affair with Smilax, was turned by the gods into a plant bearing his name: the crocus Saffron. ... Species See text. ... In Greek mythology, a nymph is any member of a large class of female nature entities, either bound to a particular location or landform or joining the retinue of a god or goddess. ...

Description

On their own, Smilax plants will grow as a shrub, forming dense impenetrable thickets. They will also grow over trees and other plants up to 10 m high using its hooked thorns to hang on to and scramble over branches. The genus includes both deciduous and evergreen species. The leaves are heart shaped and vary from 4-30 cm long in different species. Deciduous means temporary or tending to fall off (deriving from the Latin word decidere, to fall off) and is typically used in reference to trees or shrubs that lose their leaves seasonally. ... A Silver Fir shoot showing three successive years of retained leaves In botany, an evergreen plant is a plant which retains its leaves year-round, with each leaf persisting for more than 12 months. ... “Foliage” redirects here. ...

Close up of leaf

Greenbrier is dioecious, however only about one in three colonies have plants of both sexes. Plants flower in May and June with white/green clustered flowers. If pollination occurs, the plant will produce a bright red to blue-black spherical berry fruit about 5-10 mm in diameter that matures in the fall. Download high resolution version (2448x1632, 424 KB) A close up of a greenbrier leaf, taken by selevercin. ... Download high resolution version (2448x1632, 424 KB) A close up of a greenbrier leaf, taken by selevercin. ... Plant sexuality deals with the wide variety of sexual reproduction systems found across the plant kingdom. ... A Phalaenopsis flower Rudbeckia fulgida A flower, (<Old French flo(u)r<Latin florem<flos), also known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Magnoliophyta, also called angiosperms). ... A flower-fly pollinating a Common Daisy (Bellis perennis) Pollination is an important step in the reproduction of seed plants: the transfer of pollen grains (male gametes) to the plant carpel, the structure that contains the ovule (female gamete). ... Several types of berries from the market. ... For other uses, see Fruit (disambiguation). ...

The berry is rubbery in texture and has a large, spherical seed in the center. The fruit stays intact through winter, when birds and other animals eat them to survive. The seeds are passed unharmed in the animal's droppings. Since many Smilax colonies are single clones that have spread by rhizomes, both sexes may not be present at a site, in which case no fruit is formed. “Aves” redirects here. ... Ginger rhizome A rhizome is, in botany, a usually underground, horizontal stem of a plant that often sends out roots and shoots from its nodes. ...

Species

For a full species list, see list of Smilax species; selected common species include: This is a listing of all known Smilax species. ...

Smilax aspera (Common Smilax)
Smilax bona-nox (Saw Greenbrier) (images)
Smilax glauca (Cat Greenbrier) (images)
Smilax herbacea (Carrion flower)
Smilax hispida (Bristly Greenbrier)
Smilax pseudochina (False Chinaroot)
Smilax pulverulenta (Carrion flower)
Smilax regelii (Sarsaparilla)
Smilax rotundifolia (Common Greenbrier) Stinking flowers or Carrion flowers are flowers that smell like rotting flesh. ... Stinking flowers or Carrion flowers are flowers that smell like rotting flesh. ... Binomial name Smilax regelii Killip & Morton Sarsaparilla (Smilax regelii and other closely related species of Smilax) is a vine that bears roots with many useful properties. ... Binomial name Smilax regelii Killip & Morton Sarsaparilla (Smilax regelii and other closely related species of Smilax) is a vine that bears roots with many useful properties. ... Binomial name Smilax rotundifolia L. Common Greenbriar (Smilax rotundifolia), also known as Common Greenbrier, is a common woody vine native to the Eastern United States [1]. The leaves are glossy green, petioled, alternate, and circular to heart-shaped. ... Binomial name Smilax rotundifolia L. Common Greenbriar (Smilax rotundifolia) is a common woody vine native to the Eastern United States [1]. The leaves are glossy green, petioled, alternate, and circular to heart-shaped. ...

Ecology

Smilax growth

Smilax is a very damage-tolerant plant capable of growing back from its rhizomes after being cut down or burned down by fire. This, coupled with the fact that birds and other small animals spread the seeds over large areas, makes the plants very hard to get rid of. It grows best in moist woodlands with a soil pH between 5 and 6. The seeds have the highest percent chance of germinating after being exposed to a freeze. Download high resolution version (1632x2448, 1310 KB) A picture of a small greenbrier plant taken in the middle of winter by selevercin. ... Download high resolution version (1632x2448, 1310 KB) A picture of a small greenbrier plant taken in the middle of winter by selevercin. ... Ginger rhizome A rhizome is, in botany, a usually underground, horizontal stem of a plant that often sends out roots and shoots from its nodes. ... Forest fire redirects here. ... The correct title of this article is . ...

Besides providing an important fruit for animals (especially birds) during the winter, the greenbrier plant also provides shelter for many other animals. The thorny thickets can effectively protect small animals from other larger animals who cannot enter the greenbrier. Deer will eat the foliage. “Fawn” redirects here. ...

Uses

An extract from the roots of some species are used to make the drink Sarsaparilla. The roots may also be used in soups or stews, the young shoots can be eaten raw or cooked and are said to taste like asparagus, and the berries can be eaten both raw and cooked. Binomial name Smilax regelii Killip & Morton Sarsaparilla (Smilax regelii and other closely related species of Smilax) is a vine that bears roots with many useful properties. ... Binomial name Asparagus officinalis L. Asparagus officinalis is a plant species in the family Asparagaceae from which the popular vegetable known as asparagus is obtained. ...

"Rad.Sarzae.Jam.", used medicinally as a cure for gout in Latin American countries, is a powder made from the roots of Jamaican sarsaparilla. The rather unusual name is an old pharmaceutical abbreviation for a Latin phrase meaning, "Root of the Jamaican Brier." Latin America consists of the countries of South America and some of North America (including Central America and some the islands of the Caribbean) whose inhabitants mostly speak Romance languages, although Native American languages are also spoken. ... Pharmacology (in Greek: pharmacon is drug, and logos is science) is the study of how chemical substances interfere with living systems. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Latin is an ancient Indo-European language originally spoken in Latium, the region immediately surrounding Rome. ... Primary and secondary roots in a cotton plant In vascular plants, the root is that organ of a plant body that typically lies below the surface of the soil (compare with stem). ...

Jamaican sarsaparilla also contains at least four phytosterols of the progesterone class, and is therefore recommended by herbalists as a remedy for the symptoms of premenstrual syndrome. It appears to be most effective at alleviating these symptoms in premenopausal women over the age of 35. β-sitosterol Phytosterols (also called plant sterols) are a group of steroid alcohol, phytochemicals naturally occurring in plants. ... Progesterone is a C-21 steroid hormone involved in the female menstrual cycle, pregnancy (supports gestation) and embryogenesis of humans and other species. ... Dioscorides’ Materia Medica, c. ... “PMS” redirects here. ... Menopause (also known as the Change of life or climacteric) is a stage of the human female reproductive cycle that occurs as the ovaries stop producing estrogen, causing the reproductive system to gradually shut down. ... Image of a woman on the Pioneer plaque sent to outer space. ...

Trivia

• The leaves and berries of Smilax regelii (Sarsaparilla) are favorite foods of the Smurfs, who call the berries "Smurfberries".

• In the RPG video-game Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars the name Smilax refers to a species of Piranha Plant that serves as a boss before entering the Nimbus Land.

• In the 1974 TV series Land of the Lost, Holly often attempted to make smilax cakes resulting in a doughy, gummy, barely edible confection.

The Smurfs (Les Schtroumpfs in original) are a fictional group of small sky blue creatures who live somewhere in the forests of medieval Europe. ... Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (&#12473;&#12540;&#12497;&#12540;&#12510;&#12522;&#12458;RPG) was the last Mario game made and released for the Super Famicom/Super Nintendo Entertainment System, and was the last Square-produced game for a Nintendo video game console until 2003, with the debut... The Common Piranha plant. ... Land of the Lost, the 1945 childrens radio series by Isabel Manning Hewson Land of the Lost, The Sid and Marty Krofft 1974 science fiction television series Land of the Lost, The 1991 remake of the 1974 series Land of the Lost is the name of an album by...

References

1. ^ Wild Plants of Malta & Gozo