-ales
Orders of plants.
[The plural of the Latin adjectival suffix -alis.]
In the hierarchical classification of plants, orders come immediately below the subclass or superorder (whose names end in -ae), and immediately above the families (whose names end in -aceae). Some examples are Orchidales, the order containing orchids; Rosales, the roses and related plants; Taxales, the yews; Equisetales, the horsetails; and the Ranunculales, the buttercups and related plants.
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