Family: Scrophulariaceae — figwort family

Plants in the Scrophulariaceae annual, biennial, or perennial herbs or shrubs. The leaves of our species are alternate or opposite, simple, and have entire or toothed margins. The flowers are solitary or arranged in branched or unbranched inflorescences. The flowers have both pollen-bearing and ovule-bearing parts, and usually zygomorphic (i.e., bilaterally symmetrical). There are 4-5 sepals that are usually fused together at the base, and 4-5 petals that are also fused together at the base to form a bell shape or a tube. There are 4-5 stamens. The stamens open by a single, distal slit oriented at a right-angle to the axis of the anther. There is 1 style. The fruit is a capsule that splits open to release its seeds. This family has seen major revisions based on phylogenetic evidence. Some species formerly placed here are now placed in the Linderniaceae, Orobanchaceae, Paulowniaceae, Phrymaceae, and Plantaginaceae.

This family’s genera in New England

• Buddleja
• Limosella
• Scrophularia
• Verbascum

Visit this family in the Dichotomous Key

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