Ranunculales

ORDER: RANALES (RANUNCULALES)

The Ranales (Latin rana, a frog) order is a large group of plants made up of 10 families, about 140 or more genera and approximately 3,000 to 3,500 species. It is a rather diverse grouping, including many herbaceous plants and climbers, though some are woody shrubs. Many species are abundant in most temperate regions, and include a number of plants of great ornamental value, which are grown in gardens in many parts of the world. Quite a number of species belonging to this order are common and noxious weeds, particularly in Europe and N. America; indeed many species contain compounds (mainly alkaloids), that are poisonous to man or to livestock.

The order is a cosmopolitan group of plants and is found everywhere; its species are, however, more common in temperate and subtropical regions than in the tropics. The buttercup genus, Ranunculus, for example is common in Europe and N. America, and the monkshood genus, Aconitum is abundant in the Himalayas and Eastern Asia.

Members of this order enjoy a wide range of habitats, including freshwater, waste ground, field margins, grassland, pasture, forest, moorland, bogs and marshes, mountain pastures and mountain slopes. In general, most species are either adapted to average moist habitats or to very wet ones.

Examples of some invaluable garden-plants, which belong to some families - other than Ranunculaceae - in this order, include species of Akebia, Decaisnea (the blue, fleshy fruits of Decaisnea fargesii are very noticeable in autumn and never fail to attract attention), Stephania japonica, Cocculus orbiculatus, Glaucidium palmatum, species of Berberis, Epimedium, Jeffersonia, Mahonia, Gymnospermum, Podophyllum peltatum (mayapple - edible fruits), and other species of Podophyllum, Ranzania, Vancouveria and Nandina domestica.