The flowering plants, also known as Angiospermae or Magnoliophyta, are the most diverse group of land plants. Together with gymnosperms, they are the only extant groups of seed-producing plants, but they can be distinguished from the gymnosperms by a series of synapomorphies . These characteristics include flowers, endosperm within the seeds, and the production of fruits that contain the seeds.
The ancestors of flowering plants diverged from gymnosperms around 245–202 million years ago, and the first flowering plants known to exist are from 140 million years ago. They diversified enormously during the Lower Cretaceous and became widespread around 100 million years ago, but replaced conifers as the dominant trees only around 60-100 million years ago.
The ancestors of flowering plants diverged from gymnosperms around 245–202 million years ago, and the first flowering plants known to exist are from 140 million years ago. They diversified enormously during the Lower Cretaceous and became widespread around 100 million years ago, but replaced conifers as the dominant trees only around 60-100 million years ago.