Commelinales

Commelinales is an order of flowering plants comprising five families, Commelinaceae, Haemodoraceae, Hanguanaceae, Philydraceae, and Pontederiaceae, together holding over 885 species in about 70 genera, with Commelinaceae contributing the majority of species. Members are united by a lack of mycorrhizal associations and by tapetal raphides, and molecular estimates place the origin of the order in the Mesozoic Era, between about 123 and 73 million years ago, with diversification following between 110 and 66 million years ago. Its closest relatives are the Zingiberales, which include ginger, bananas, and cardamom.