Diversity in floral morphological characters of the genus Alchemilla L. (Rosaceae) from Iran and its taxonomic significance

Floral morphology of 24 species of the genus Alchemilla in Iran was studied by means of light and digital mi-croscopes. Flower samples were collected from different species and their morphological traits, including hypanthium, calyx, epicalyx, pedicels, ovaries and stamens, were measured. The most useful features for the separation of species were turned out to be the calyx shape and length, trichomes position on calyx and pedicle. Principal Component Anal-ysis (PCA) and Cluster Analysis (CA) were used to determine the potential contribution of floral morphological char-acters in the expression of species relationships. A total of 17 qualitative and quantitative characters were utilized in both analyses. The results of UPGMA and PCA methods were found to be consistent and in agreement with current classifications.