Sympetalae, meaning “with fused petals”, is a descriptive botanical name

Descriptive botanical names

Descriptive botanical names are names that are governed by Article 16 of the International Code of Botanical Nomenclature , which rules that a name above the rank of family may be either descriptive or formed from the name of an included family...

 used in the Eichler

Eichler system

A system of plant taxonomy, the Eichler system is an early phylogenetic or evolutionary system. It was published by August W. Eichler inAccording to Oudemans it divides plants into the following groups:* A. Cryptogamae*: phylum I. Thallophyta...

, Engler

Engler system

One of the prime systems of plant taxonomy, the Engler system was devised by Adolf Engler.According to Engler, Syllabus der Pflanzenfamilien the main groups of plants are:* I. divisio Schizophyta* II. divisio Phytosarcodina...

, and Wettstein system

Wettstein system

A system of plant taxonomy, the Wettstein system recognised the following main groups, according to* I. phylum Schizophyta*::: 1. classis Schizophyceae*::: 2. classis Schizomycetes* II. phylum Monadophyta* III. phylum Myxophyta...

s for a group in the flowering plants. In this group the flowers have a separate calyx

Sepal

A sepal is a part of the flower of angiosperms . Collectively the sepals form the calyx, which is the outermost whorl of parts that form a flower. Usually green, sepals have the typical function of protecting the petals when the flower is in bud...

 and corolla with the petal

Petal

Petals are modified leaves that surround the reproductive parts of flowers. They often are brightly colored or unusually shaped to attract pollinators. Together, all of the petals of a flower are called a corolla. Petals are usually accompanied by another set of special leaves called sepals lying...

s fused, at least at the base of the corolla, a condition known as sympetaly

Sympetaly

' is the condition of some flowers in which the petals are fused together . in some of these flowers, like with Gentiana asclepiadea are only partially fused at the base, but in other flowers, such as Gentiana andrewsii, they are fully fused and never open...

.

In August Eichler's classification Bluthendiagramme, Sympetalae, also classified as Metachlamydeae, was listed as a subclass of the class Dicotyleae. Adolf Engler

Adolf Engler

Heinrich Gustav Adolf Engler was a German botanist. He is notable for his work on plant taxonomy and phytogeography, like Die Natürlichen Pflanzenfamilien , edited with Karl A. E...

 and Karl Prantl

Karl Anton Eugen Prantl

Karl Anton Eugen Prantl , also known as Carl Anton Eugen Prantl, was a German botanist.Prantl was born in Munich, Kingdom of Bavaria, and studied in Munich. In 1870 he graduated with the dissertation Das Inulin. Ein Beitrag zur Pflanzenphysiologie...

 also listed Sympetalae as a division of the class Dicotyledoneae in their system, Die Naturlichen Pflanzenfamilien, with Sympetalae being composed of gamopetalous families Alfred Rendle similarly Sympetalae originated from dicots, and then divided Sympetalae into Pentacyclicae and Tetracyclicae in accordance with the number of flower parts in each group.

According to Engler and Prantl, Sympetalae includes the following orders: Diapensiales, Ericales

Ericales

The Ericales are a large and diverse order of dicotyledons, including for example tea, persimmon, blueberry, Brazil nut, and azalea. The order includes trees and bushes, lianas and herbaceous plants. Together with ordinary autophytic plants, the Ericales include chlorophyll-deficient...

, Primulales

Primulales

Primulales is a botanical name of an order of flowering plants. This name was used in several systems with little variation in circumscription...

, Plumbaginales

Plumbaginales

Plumbaginales is an order of flowering plants. The order is recognized by several systems, such as the Wettstein system, last revised in 1935, the Engler system, in its update of 1964 and the Cronquist system, 1981. Its circumscription is typically:...

, Ebenales

Ebenales

Ebenales is the botanical name of an order of flowering plants. This name was used in several systems, for example the Bentham & Hooker system and the Engler system, although the Wettstein system preferred the name Diospyrales'...

, Contortae, Tubiflorae

Tubiflorae

Tubiflorae is a botanical name, meaning “with tubular flowers”. It was used in the Engler system for:...

, Plantaginales, Rubiales

Rubiales

Rubiales was an order of flowering plants in the Cronquist system, including the families Rubiaceae and Theligonaceae. The latest APG system does not recognize this order and places the families within Gentianales....

, Cucurbitales

Cucurbitales

The Cucurbitales are an order of flowering plants, included in the rosid group of dicotyledons. This order mostly belongs to tropical areas, with limited presence in subtropic and temperate regions. The order includes shrubs and trees, together with many herbs and climbers...

, and Campanulatae.