Belongs within: Poales.
Contains: Luzula subgenus Gymnodes, Juncus section Genuini, Juncus section Graminifolii, Juncus section Poiophylli, Juncus section Septati.
The Juncaceae are a family of rushes, grass-like plants found mostly in damper habitats in temperate parts of the world (as well as tropical mountains). Flowers are solitary and relatively large (over five millimetres) in members of the genera Rostkovia and Marsippospermum, but usually clustered in cymes and smaller in species of Luzula and Juncus. Juncus have glabrous leaves and produce many-seeded capsules whereas leaves are sparsely hairy and capsules are three-seeded in Luzula (Moore & Edgar 1970).
Characters (from Healy & Edgar 1980): Annual or perennial plants, tufted and grass-like, or with sympodial rhizome. Stems usually simple, erect. Leaves mostly clustered at base of stem, glabrous or sparsely hairy, sheathing at base, laminae flat and grass-like, or laterally compressed, or channelled, or terete like stems, or leaves reduced to basal sheaths only. Flowers bisexual, or rarely unisexual and plants dioecious, few to numerous in terminal monochasial cymes, occasionally condensed to a compact head, or flowers rarely solitary. Tepals 6, rarely 4, in two whorls, glumaceous, often with membranous margins. Stamens free, in two whorls of three, or with inner whorl missing, or variable 3-6, attached to base of tepals; filaments free, anthers two-celled, introrse, basifixed. Ovary superior, syncarpous, 1- or more or less completely 3-locular; style 1, short, stigmas 3, brush-like. Fruit a three-valved capsule opening loculicidally. Seeds 3 to numerous, often tailed at one or both ends, or tailless, sometimes mucilaginous.
<==Juncaceae [Eujunceae] | i. s.: Distichia Nees 1843D24 | PatosiaYY22 | Rostkovia Desv. 1808ME70 | |--*R. magellanica (Lam.) Hook. f. 1844 [=Juncus magellanicus Lam. 1789, R. sphaerocarpa Desv. 1808]ME70 | `--R. tristanensisME70 |--Luzula DC. 1805 (nom. cons.)SB19, ME70 | | i. s.: L. acuminata [incl. L. saltuensis]V72 | | L. antarcticaD03 | | L. chilensisB78 | | L. comosa [incl. L. campestris var. columbiana, L. comosa var. macrantha, L. comosa var. subsessilis]H93 | | L. confusaH44 | | L. congesta (Thuillier) Lejeune 1811HE80 [=L. comosa var. congestaH93] | | L. decipiens Edgar 1975HE80 | | L. divaricataH93 | | L. flaccida (Buchenau) Edgar 1975HE80 | | L. forsteriSB19 | | L. glabrataC55b | | L. glomerataR13 | | L. longifloraB78 | | L. meridionalisGK00 | | L. niveaC55b | | L. oliganthaO88 | | L. oresteraH93 | | L. parviflora [incl. L. parviflora var. fastigiata, L. parviflora var. melanocarpa]H93 | | L. peruvianaB78 | | L. pilosa [incl. L. vernalis]C55a | | L. spicata [incl. L. spicata var. nova, L. spicata var. saximontana]H93 | | L. subcongestaH93 | `--L. subg. GymnodesME70 `--+--+--Oxychloe bisexualisSB19 | `--Marsippospermum Desv. 1808SB19, ME70 | |--*M. grandiflorumME70 | `--M. gracile (Hook. f.) Buch. 1879 (see below for synonymy)ME70 `--Juncus Linnaeus 1753SB19, ME70 | i. s.: J. allioidesO88 | J. alpinusV72 | |--J. a. var. alpinusV72 | `--J. a. var. rariflorusV72 | J. balticus [incl. J. balticus var. montanus]H93 | |--J. b. var. balticusV72 | `--J. b. var. littoralisV72 | |--J. b. var. l. f. littoralisV72 | `--J. b. var. l. f. dissitiflorusV72 | J. bhutanensisO88 | J. biflorusV72 | J. biglumisH44 | J. bolanderiH93 | J. brachycephalusV72 | J. brachyphyllusH93 | J. brachystigmaO88 | J. brevicaudatusV72 | J. breweri [incl. J. lesueurii var. tracyi]H93 | J. bryoidesH93 | J. capillarisH93 | J. cephalostigmaO88 | J. chlorocephalusH93 | J. concinnusO88 | J. confususH93 | J. cooperiH93 | J. covilleiH93 | |--J. c. var. covilleiH93 | `--J. c. var. obtusatusH93 | J. cyperoidesH93 | J. diffusissimusH93 | J. dioicus (n. d.)B78 | J. drummondiiH93 | J. dubiusH93 | J. dudleyiH93 [=J. tenuis var. dudleyiH93; incl. J. tenuis var. uniflorusV72] | J. duranii [=J. mertensianus var. duranii]H93 | J. falcatus [incl. J. agrostophyllus, J. tasmanicus]B78 | J. filiformis Linnaeus 1753ME70 | J. foliosus [=J. bufonius var. fotiosus (Desf.) Coutinho 1890]FC97 | J. glaucusC06 | J. greeneiV72 | J. grisebachiiO88 | J. hemiendytusH93 | |--J. h. var. hemiendytusH93 | `--J. h. var. abjectusH93 | J. himalensisO88 | J. howelliiH93 | J. hybridus [incl. J. bufonius var. fasciculatus]FC97 | J. interiorV72 | J. kelloggiiH93 | J. kingiiO88 | J. kraussiiSM06 | J. leiospermusH93 | |--J. l. var. leiospermusH93 | `--J. l. var. ahartiiH93 | J. leseuriiS00 | J. leucanthusO88 | J. leucomelasO88 | J. longistylisH93 | J. luciensisH93 | J. macrandrusH93 | J. macrophyllusH93 | J. marginatusH93 | J. mertensianusH93 | J. mexicanusH93 | J. militarisV72 | J. minimusO88 | J. nevadensis (see below for synonymy)H93 | J. nodosusH93 | J. obtusiflorusC06 | J. occidentalis (see below for synonymy)H93 | J. orthophyllusH93 | J. oxymerisH93 | J. parryiH93 | J. patensH93 | J. pelocarpusV72 | |--J. p. f. pelocarpusV72 | `--J. p. f. submersusV72 | J. phaeocephalusH93 | |--J. p. var. phaeocephalusH93 | `--J. p. var. paniculatusH93 | J. plebeiusME70 | J. polyanthemus Buchen. 1895ME70, C06 | J. pseudocastaneusO88 | J. radulaGK00 | J. regeliiH93 | J. revolutusB78 | J. roemerianusE99 | J. rugulosusH93 | J. saximontanus [incl. J. saximontanus f. brunnescens]H93 | J. scirpoidesV72 | J. sikkimensisO88 | |--J. s. var. sikkimensisO88 | `--J. s. var. monocephalusO88 | J. sorrentinii [incl. J. bufonius var. condensatus Coutinho 1890]FC99 | J. sphacelatusO88 | J. stipulatusD03 | J. striatusB78 | J. stygiusV72 | J. subulatusBG96 | J. supiniformis [incl. J. oreganus]H93 | J. textilisH93 | J. thomsoniiO88 | J. tiehmiiH93 | J. torreyi [incl. J. torreyi f. longipes]V72 | J. triformis [incl. J. megaspermus]H93 | J. triglumisO88 | J. uncialisH93 | J. vaseyiV72 | J. xiphioidesH93 |--J. sect. GenuiniHE80 |--J. sect. GraminifoliiHE80 |--J. sect. PoiophylliHE80 |--J. sect. SeptatiHE80 `--J. sect. ThalassiiHE80 |--J. acutus Linnaeus 1753HE80 | |--J. a. ssp. acutusH93 | `--J. a. ssp. leopoldii [incl. J. acutus var. sphaerocarpus]H93 `--J. maritimus de Lamarck 1789HE80 |--J. m. var. maritimusHE80 `--J. m. var. australiensis Buchenau 1890HE80
Juncus nevadensis [incl. J. phaeocephalus var. gracilis non J. effusus var. gracilis, J. mertensianus var. gracilis]H93
Juncus occidentalis [=J. tenuis var. occidentalis; incl. J. tenuis var. congestus non J. bufonius var. congestus]H93
Marsippospermum gracile (Hook. f.) Buch. 1879 [=Rostkovia gracilis Hook. f. 1844; incl. Juncus hookeridis Steud. 1855, R. novae-zelandiae Buchan. 1872, Marsippospermum gracile var. novae-zelandiae (Buchan.) Buch. 1890]ME70
*Type species of generic name indicated
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