The anatomical comparison of petioles from 38 species in Angelica sensu lato and allied taxa from China involved the shapes of cross section,smooth or undulate margin,the presence of cavity,the shape and number of collenchyma,and the number and arrangement of vascular bundle,which possessed rich diversity and intraspecies stability exhibiting taxonomic significance in those taxa.Based on these petiolar characters,four types of petioles could be recognized:Hollow-ring type (Ⅰ),Φ-type (Ⅱ),U/V-type (Ⅲ),Multi-ring type (Ⅳ).Moreover,the potential evolutionary trends of petiolar structure in this group were also suggested:solid petiole was derived;the Hollow-ring type seemed relatively primitive,the Φ-type was transitional,and both U/V-type and Multi-ring type were relatively developed.