# Acanthophyllum

Acanthophyllum is a genus of flowering plants in the family Caryophyllaceae with about 75 species, spread in the Irano-Turanian area.

## Description

Small, shrubby perennial plants with spiny leaves. Flowers white or pink, sessile in solitary or globose heads. Spiny bracts. Calyx cylindrical, with 5 teeth. Petals 5, entire or retuse. Stamens 20. Capsule ovoid, irregularly dehiscent from base. Reniform seeds.

## Taxonomy

The genus was described by Carl Anton von Meyer and published in Verzeichness der Pflanzen des Caspischen Meeres 210, 1831. The type species is Acanthophyllum mucronatum C.A.Mey.

## Species

As of March 2023, Plants of the World Online accepted the following species:
* Acanthophyllum acerosum Sosn.
* Acanthophyllum aculeatum Schischk.
* Acanthophyllum adenophorum Freyn
* Acanthophyllum afghanicum (Podlech) A.Pirani & Zarre
* Acanthophyllum albidum Schischk.
* Acanthophyllum allochrusoides (Gilli) Pirani
* Acanthophyllum andarabicum Podlech ex Schiman-Czeika
* Acanthophyllum andersenii Schiman-Czeika
* Acanthophyllum anisocladum Schiman-Czeika
* Acanthophyllum aphananthum Rech.f.
* Acanthophyllum bilobum Schiman-Czeika
* Acanthophyllum bracteatum Boiss.
* Acanthophyllum brevibracteatum Lipsky
* Acanthophyllum bungei (Boiss.) Trautv.
* Acanthophyllum caespitosum Boiss.
* Acanthophyllum cerastioides (D.Don) Madhani & Zarre
* Acanthophyllum coloratum Schischk.
* Acanthophyllum crassifolium Boiss.
* Acanthophyllum cyrtostegium Vved.
* Acanthophyllum diaphanopterum A.Pirani & Moazzeni
* Acanthophyllum diezianum Hand.-Mazz.
* Acanthophyllum eglandulosum (Hedge & Wendelbo) Pirani
* Acanthophyllum ejtehadii Mahmoudi & Vaezi
* Acanthophyllum ekbergii (Hedge & Wendelbo) A.Pirani & Rabeler
* Acanthophyllum elatius Bunge
* Acanthophyllum flavum (Dickoré & Freitag) A.Pirani & Rabeler
* Acanthophyllum glandulosum Bunge ex Boiss.
* Acanthophyllum gracile Bunge ex Boiss.
* Acanthophyllum grandiflorum Stocks
* Acanthophyllum gypsophiloides Regel
* Acanthophyllum herniarioides (Boiss.) Madhani & Zarre
* Acanthophyllum honigbergeri (Fenzl) Barkoudah
* Acanthophyllum kabulicum Schiman-Czeika
* Acanthophyllum kandaharicum Gilli
* Acanthophyllum kermanense (Bornm.) A.Pirani & Rabeler
* Acanthophyllum knorringianum Schischk.
* Acanthophyllum korolkowii Regel & Schmalh.
* Acanthophyllum korshinskyi Schischk.
* Acanthophyllum krascheninnikovii Schischk.
* Acanthophyllum lamondiae Schiman-Czeika
* Acanthophyllum laxiflorum Boiss.
* Acanthophyllum laxiusculum Schiman-Czeika
* Acanthophyllum lilacinum Schischk.
* Acanthophyllum lindbergii (Hedge & Wendelbo) A.Pirani & Oxelman
* Acanthophyllum longicalyx Hedge & Wendelbo
* Acanthophyllum luteum (Falat. & Mahmoodi) A.Pirani & Kovalchuk
* Acanthophyllum maimanense Schiman-Czeika
* Acanthophyllum makranicum (Rech.f.) A.Pirani & Rabeler
* Acanthophyllum mikeschinianum Yukhan. & Kuvaev
* Acanthophyllum mucronatum C.A.Mey.
* Acanthophyllum myrianthum (Rech.f.) Madhani & A.Pirani
* Acanthophyllum oppositiflorum Aytaç
* Acanthophyllum pachycephalum Schiman-Czeika
* Acanthophyllum pachystegium Rech.f.
* Acanthophyllum paniculatum Regel & Herder
* Acanthophyllum persicum (Boiss.) A.Pirani & Rabeler
* Acanthophyllum pleiostegium Schiman-Czeika
* Acanthophyllum popovii (Preobr.) Barkoudah
* Acanthophyllum pulcherrimum Hedge & Wendelbo
* Acanthophyllum pulchrum Schischk.
* Acanthophyllum pungens (Bunge) Boiss.
* Acanthophyllum raphiophyllum (Rech.f.) Barkoudah
* Acanthophyllum recurvum Regel
* Acanthophyllum sarawschanicum Golenkin
* Acanthophyllum scapiflorum (Akhtar) Schiman-Czeika
* Acanthophyllum schugnanicum Schischk.
* Acanthophyllum sedifolium (Kurz) Madhani & Zarre
* Acanthophyllum sordidum Bunge ex Boiss.
* Acanthophyllum speciosum Schiman-Czeika
* Acanthophyllum spinosum (Desf.) C.A.Mey.
* Acanthophyllum squarrosum Boiss.
* Acanthophyllum stenocalycinum (Rech.f. & Schiman-Czeika) A.Pirani & Moazzeni
* Acanthophyllum stenostegium Freyn
* Acanthophyllum stocksianum Boiss.
* Acanthophyllum subglabrum Schischk.
* Acanthophyllum tadshikistanicum (Schischk.) Schischk.
* Acanthophyllum takhtajanii (Gabrieljan & Dittrich) A.Pirani & Rabeler
* Acanthophyllum transhyrcanum G.Preobr.
* Acanthophyllum versicolor Fisch. & C.A.Mey.
* Acanthophyllum verticillatum C.A.Mey.
* Acanthophyllum xanthoporphyranthum Hedge & Wendelbo
* Acanthophyllum yasamin-nassehiae Joharchi & A.Pirani