This classification is based on various recently published phylogenetic
analyses, and it is equivalent to "An ordinal classification for the families
of flowering plants", as submitted for publication in the Annals of the
Missouri Botanical Garden by the "Angiosperm Phylogeny Group". Several
families are deliberately not classified to order to avoid undesirable
non-monophyletic taxa as well as redundant monofamilial taxa. Note that
the Linnaean categories of order and family are only to be conceived as
a convenient reference to hierarchical relationships. Groups of the same
rank are not comparable units unless they are sister groups.
SUMMARY 1998
ANGIOSPERMS some families not classified to order and the four orders
Ceratophyllales
Piperales
Laurales
Magnoliales
all other angiosperms are monocots or eudicots
MONOCOTS some families not classified to order and the six orders
Acorales
Alismatales
Dioscoreales
Pandanales
Liliales
Asparagales
all other monocots are commelinoids
COMMELINOIDS some families not classified to order and the four orders
Arecales
Commelinales
Zingiberales
Poales
EUDICOTS some families not classified to order and the two orders
Ranunculales
Proteales
all other eudicots are core eudicots
CORE
EUDICOTS some families not classified to order and the three orders
Saxifragales
Santalales
Caryophyllales
all other core eudicots are rosids or asterids
ROSIDS some families not classified to order and the order
Geraniales
EUROSIDS
I some families not classified to order and the six orders
Oxalidales
Rosales
Fabales
Cucurbitales
Fagales
Malpighiales
EUROSIDS II some families not classified to order and the four orders