Micromorphology of petal epidermis of some umbelliferous plants in Korea was studied with scanning electron microscope. Both adaxial and abaxial epidermal cell characteristics of cell shape, anticlinal wall pattern, and cuticular sculpture were described in detail. These characters have not been studied for this taxon previously. Most species of subfamily Apioideae have papillose epidermal cells on the adaxial face. In contrast, H. maritima, which belongs to subfamily Hydrocotyloideae and two species of subfamily Saniculoideae, S. chinensis and S. rubriflora, have rugose tabular epidermal cells. Based on differences of adaxial epidermal cell shape, it could be suggested that these taxa may have different pollination mechanisms. Although patterns of petal micromorphology are not always in agreement with current classification systems, the results suggest that petal micromorphology could have some diagnostic value in umbelliferous plants.
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