Frantzia

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Frantzia
Frantzia tacaco
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Cucurbitales
Family: Cucurbitaceae
Subfamily: Cucurbitoideae
Tribe: Sicyoeae
Genus: Frantzia
Pittier
Species

Frantzia is a genus of the gourd family, Cucurbitaceae containing around 6 species of herbaceous climbers with tuberous roots. All members grow in forest and secondary scrub in Central America where tacaco (Frantzia tacaco) is a widely cultivated vegetable.

Description[edit]

Frantzia species can reach several meters long. Flowers are small and monoecious with male flowers produced in racemes and female flowers either solitary or in groups of 2–5. Leaves are simple, long-petiolate, with palmately lobed or angulate blade.[1]

Taxonomy[edit]

The accepted species according to the Catalogue of Life are:[2]

Frantzia is placed in the Sicyoeae tribe.[1]

Phylogenetics[edit]

Frantzia is sister to the Echinopepon genus within the Sicyoeae tribe. Phylogenetic studies suggest these relationships:[1][3]

Echinopepon spp. (19 species)

Marah spp.

Frantzia venosa (Costa Rica)

Frantzia talamancensis (Costa Rica)

Frantzia panamensis (Panama)

Frantzia pittieri (Costa Rica)

Frantzia villosa (Costa Rica)

Frantzia tacaco (Costa Rica)

Marah spp. (8 species)

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c "Frantzia | Cucurbitaceae". The Cucurbit Website. Retrieved 2022-12-07.
  2. ^ "COL | Frantzia Pittier". Catalogue of Life. Retrieved 2022-12-07.
  3. ^ "Radiation following long-distance dispersal: The contributions of time, opportunity and diaspore morphology in Sicyos (Cucurbitaceae)". Journal of Biogeography. 39 (8): 1427–1438. 2012. doi:10.2307/23258814.