Scientific name Cheilanthes Rank Genus | Division Pteridophyta Higher classification Pteridaceae | |
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Lower classifications Cheilanthes gracillima, Cheilanthes feei, Cheilanthes covillei, Cheilanthes parryi, Cheilanthes clevelandii | ||
Cheilanthes (lip ferns) is a genus of about 180 species of rock-dwelling ferns with a cosmopolitan distribution in warm, dry, rocky regions, often growing in small crevices high up on cliffs. Most are small, sturdy and evergreen. The leaves, often densely covered in trichomes, spring directly from the rootstocks. Many of them are desert ferns, curling up during dry times and reviving with the coming of moisture. At the ends of veins sporangia, or spore-bearing structures, are protected by leaf margins, which curl over them.
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This genus is now known to be highly paraphyletic, comprising at least four generically separate groups. The Type species, C. micropteris, is most closely allied to the genera Aleuritopteris and Sinopteris (Schuettpelz et al.). In 2012, seventeen species were moved to the new genus Gaga, which also includes two new species.
The genus name is derived from the Greek words χεῖλος (cheilos), meaning "lip," and ἄνθος (anthos), meaning "flower."
Cheilanthes garden plants
Selected species
Formerly placed here
