Can the sectional position of Gentiana cachemirica be clarified by a detailed analysis of its morphology?

Abstract

Gentiana cachemirica is a rare plant from northern Pakistan and northwestern India. The sectional position of this species has been a matter of considerable debate. Various authors have placed Gentiana cachemirica in one of three different sections - Gentiana sect. Isomeria, Gentiana sect. Kudoa or Gentiana sect. Pneumonanthe. The present paper assesses the taxonomic affinities of this species using a detailed study of its morphology accompanied by morphological phylogenetic and cluster analyses. Characters of the seed testa, corolla morphology and growth architecture were studied for selected species from the above-mentioned sections and closely related Gentiana sect. Cruciata. Representatives of Gentiana sect. Ciminalis were used as outgroups. Our results suggest that G. cachemirica belongs to Gentiana sect. Pneumonanthe and that its affinities are closer to the Western Asiatic group of this section. © 2007 Trustees of the Royal Botanic Garden.