Suaedoideae

The Suaedoideae have well-developed leaves. Except for genus Bienertia, the leaves show a central and many lateral vascular bundles. The leaves are neither decurrent nor amplexicaul.

The inflorescences are axillary cymes. The flowers are sitting free in the axils of bracts, with lateral bracteoles. The perianth consists of 5 tepals, which are more or less fused basally. 5 stamens are present. The seed encloses a spiral embryo, mostly without any perisperm.

The Suaedoideae have a nearly worldwide distribution. They are important members of the vegetation of shores and salty inland habitats. They are especially common in dry (arid) regions.

Among the species of Suaedoideae, there are nearly equal numbers of C₃-plants and C₄-plants. During the evolution of the subfamily, the C₄-photosynthesis pathway seems to have been derived from four independent origins: two times with Kranz C₄ anatomy in Suaeda section Salsina and Suaeda section Schoberia. Two independent origins of non-Kranz C₄ systems are found in Bienertia and Suaeda section Borszczowia. In these plants, the photosynthesis pathways are located without spatial separation in a "single cell C₄" type.[1]

Habitat of Bienertia sinuspersici

Suaeda maritima

According to phylogenetic research by Kapralov et al. (2006), the Suaedoideae are grouped in 2 tribes:

• Tribus Bienertieae Ulbr., with only one genus:
  • Bienertia Bunge ex Boiss., with 3 species:
    • Bienertia cycloptera Bunge ex Boiss.[2]
    • Bienertia sinuspersici Akhani[3]
    • Bienertia kavirense Akhani [4]
• Tribus Suaedeae, with only one genus:
  • Suaeda Forssk. ex J.F.Gmel. (inclusive Alexandra Bunge and Borszczowia Bunge). With about 82 species, nearly worldwide. The genus can be further divided:
    • subgenus Brezia (Moq.) Freitag & Schütze[5]
      • section Brezia (Moq.) Volk
    • subgenus Suaeda
      • section Alexandra (Bunge) Kapralow et al.
      • section Borszczowia (Bunge) Freitag & Schütze[5]
      • section Physophora Iljin
      • section Salsina Moq. s.l. (sensu Schütze et al.)[5]
      • section Schanginia (C.A.Meyer) Volk
      • section Schoberia (C.A.Meyer) Volk
      • section Suaeda

• Halophyte

• Kapralov, Maxim V.; Akhani, Hossein; Voznesenskaya, Elena V.; Edwards, Gerald; Franceschi, Vincent; Roalson, Eric H. (2006). "Phylogenetic Relationships in the Salicornioideae / Suaedoideae / Salsoloideae s.l. (Chenopodiaceae) Clade and a Clarification of the Phylogenetic Position of Bienertia and Alexandra Using Multiple DNA Sequence Datasets". Systematic Botany. 31 (3): 571–585. doi:10.1600/036364406778388674.