small family of lower ferns having nearly naked stems and minute scalelike leaves

Psilotaceae is a family of fern-like plants consisting of two genera, Psilotum and Tmesipteris. The two genera are very different and Tmesipteris has been proposed to belong in its own family, Tmesipteridaceae, but most classifications continue to treat it in Psilotaceae. The relationships of Psilotaceae have been unclear, in part because the plants lack roots or true leaves, but recent molecular systematic studies suggest a relationship to the fern family Ophioglossaceae.