▪ This family is also known as Daisy family.

▪ It includes the plants that are normally cultivated for ornamental flowers as
well as for oil value.
▪ They are annual garden herbs.

Roots: They have tap root system and the roots are branched.

Stem:

▪ The stem is erect, branched and cylindrical.

▪ It may be herbaceous or woody.
▪ It is pubescent (covered with soft short hair) and green in color.

Leaves:

▪ Simple leaves; entire and spathulate

▪ They are cauline or ramal, alternate or exstipulate.
▪ The leaves are sessile or petiolate, acute or serrate and with unicostate
reticulate venation.

Inflorescence:

▪ Racemose head or capitulum with three series of involucre of leafy bracts like
in sunflower
▪ Capitulum may be covered by green involucre consisting of single series of
bracts.

Flower:

▪ 2 kinds of florets (central tubular disc florets surrounded by peripheral ray

florets) in the large capitulum
▪ Bracteate, regular, epigynous, sessile
▪ May be bisexual or unisexual, actinomorphic or zygomorphic

Ray floret:

▪ Bracteate or ebracteate, sessile

▪ incomplete, unisexual, pistillate or neuter, ligulate
▪ zygomorphic and epigynous, yellow to orange in color.

Calyx:

▪ Sepals are normally absent.

▪ If present, they are represented by 2 or 3 small scales or hairy pappus,
superior

Corolla:
 ▪ 3 to 5 teeth are present that represent the number of petals
▪ Gamopetalous, ligulate with large flat strap-shaped limb and a basal hairy tube
▪ Valvate, superior and yellow to orange in color

Androecium: Stamens are generally absent.

Gynoecium:

▪ Bicarpellary syncarpous with inferior ovary

▪ Ovary is unilocular with only one ovule with basal placentation.
▪ Style is simple and slender whereas stigma is bifid and curved.

Disc floret:

▪ Bracteate or ebracteate, sessile, actinomorphic

▪ My be complete or incomplete, bisexual
▪ Tubular, epigynous, actinomorphic
▪ Small and yellow to orange in color

Calyx:

▪ Absent or reduced and modified into 2 or 3 membranous white scales,

superior

Corolla:

▪ 5 teeth representing the number of petals

▪ gamopetalous, tubular, valvate, superior
▪ yellow to orange in color

Andorecium:

▪ 5 stamens are present, epipetalous, alternating with the petals, superior

▪ filament is short and free
▪ anther is large, dithecous with prolonged connective
▪ syngenesious and introsse

Gynoecium:

▪ bicarpellary syncarpous
▪ ovary is inferior and unilocular with large ovule
▪ basal placentation, style is simple whereas stigma is bifid

Fruit: Cypsela

Floral diagram with floral formula (Helianthus annuus or sunflower):

Some important plants of the family:

▪ Helianthus annuus (Sunflower)

▪ Calendula officinalis (Englilsh marigold)
▪ Tanacetum coccineum (The painted daisy)
▪ Arctotis fastuosa (Monarch of the veld)
▪ Townsendia jonesii (Townsend daisy)
▪ Helianthus tuberosus (Jerusalem artichoke)
▪ Carthamus tinctorius (safflower)
▪ Chrysanthemum coccineum (pyrethrum)

Econonmic importance:

▪ Helianthus annuus (sunflower) seeds yield edible oil.

▪ Helianthus tuberosus (Jerusalem artichoke) root tubers are edible.
▪ Carthamus tinctorius (safflower) petals yield an orange dye and the oil is used
for the manufacture of soap, dye, varnish and is also edible.
▪ Artemisia vulgaris (mugwort) and Artemisia maritima (sea wormwood) flowers
yield santonine, a drug used for curing intestinal worms, asthma and brain
disorders.
▪ Chrysanthemum coccineum (pyrethrum) roots yield pyrethrum, an insecticide.
▪ Enhydra fluctuans (water cress) leaves are used as vegetable and also to cure
insomnia (sleeplessness).
▪ Eclipta alba (false daisy) leaves are used as hair tonic.
▪ Tagetes erecta (Mexican marigold) flowers are used for eye diseases,
purification of blood and in ulcers.
▪ Calendula spp.(marigold), Tagetes patula (the French
marigold), Chrysanthemum spp. etc. have ornamental value (used as decorative
plants).