Boraginaceae - wildflowers of the Borage or Forget-me-not family
Herbs, shrubs and trees are included in the 2000 or so species that make up the Borage family, Boraginaceae - also referred to by some authorities as the Forget-me-not family.
These thumbnail pictures, a small selection of the Boraginaceae species illustrated and described on this website, have links to larger photographs and information about each of the species, their habitat needs and an identification guide.
We have used the scientific names to identify species in this table, but if you prefer to use common names we have also listed all species covered on the First Nature website in alphabetical order of Common Names...
There is also the option to see all species listed in order of Scientific Names or Botanical Families or Dominant Colour.
Boraginaceae, the Borage or Forget-me-not family, contains some 2,000 known species worldwide in 146 genera. Plants in this family have characteristics similar, in some respects at least, to flowers in the orders Gentianales (Gentians and relatives), Lamiales (Mints and relatives), and Solanales (Tomatoes and relatives), but whether the Boraginaceae should be assigned to one of these orders or be retained in an order of its own (the Boraginales) has been left undetermined in the APG III classification system published in 2009 by the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group.
Wildflowers in this family are most often blue, mauve, pink or purple, and many of them change from reddish to blue as the flowers age. The leaves of most species in this family are hairy, and some of them can cause uncomfortable skin irritation if they are handled repeatedly.
Introduction to wild flower families...
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