Passiflorales

Passiflorales is an order of flowering plants that belongs to the subclass Asteridae. The order comprises about 374 species distributed in 27 genera and two families: Passifloraceae, which includes the well-known passionflowers, and Diplinaceae, which contains the single genus Diplarche. Members of Passiflorales are mostly tropical and subtropical vines, shrubs, or trees, and they are primarily found in moist habitats such as rainforests, cloud forests, and riverbanks. Some species are also cultivated in temperate regions as ornamental plants or for their edible fruits.

The Passifloraceae are characterised by opposite leaves, often with stipules, and showy flowers arranged in dense inflorescences. The flowers display a unique fusion of the petals and the developing stamens called a corona, a feature that distinguishes many passionflowers. Diplarche in the Diplinaceae possesses a more primitive floral structure with free sepals and petals, and its fruit is a leathery capsule. Both families share a palmate root system and a similar floral arrangement, which supports their close phylogenetic relationship.

Passiflora species have cultural significance worldwide. They provide edible fruits such as passionfruit (Passiflora edulis), a popular culinary ingredient, and are cultivated for their aesthetic qualities in gardens and landscapes. Several Passiflora species are also important in traditional medicine, where extracts are used for their psychoactive, sedative, and anxiolytic properties. In forestry, some Diplarche species are valued for their timber and bark, used in paper and construction industries.

The taxonomy of Passiflorales has undergone revisions with advances in molecular phylogenetics. Current classification recognizes the order as containing two families based on genetic studies that confirm their monophyly. The group occupies an important position in the APG (Angiosperm Phylogeny Group) system, serving as a key lineage for studying the evolution of tropical plant diversity.