ORDER CARYOPHYLLALES

• Plants (Kingdom Plantae)

• Vascular Plants (Phylum Tracheophyta)

• Flowering Plants (Subphylum Angiospermae)

• Dicots (Class Magnoliopsida)

• Pinks, Cactuses, and Allies (Order Caryophyllales)

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Order Caryophyllales is one of the largest and most diverse orders of flowering plants (angiosperms), comprising more than 12,000 species distributed across every continent except Antarctica. Members include herbs, shrubs, vines, trees, succulents, mangroves, and carnivorous plants that occupy an extraordinary range of habitats, from deserts and salt marshes to tropical rainforests, alpine tundra, and coastal ecosystems.

Ecologically, they are important as primary producers, sources of nectar and fruits, and habitat-forming species, while economically they provide vegetables, grains, ornamental flowers, fruits, medicinal plants, natural dyes, and numerous agricultural crops.