Description

Key Characters:

Growth Form: Annual or perennial herbs, shrubs, or small trees.

Stems:

Roots:

Leaves: Leaves simple. Opposite, decussate. Usually with 3–7 longitudinal veins arising from base of blade, pliveined (at least inner veins diverging from midvein above base of blade), or pinnately veined with 3 or more pairs of primary veins diverging from the midvein at successive points above base of blade; no dominant midrib. Petiolate, sessile, or subsessile. Stipules absent.

Flowers: Flowers in terminal or axillary, paniculate cymes, or solitary. Flowers bisexual (perfect). Hypanthium distinct from or adnate by septae to and often longer than ovary. Calyx lobes (3-)5(or 6). Corolla of (3-)5(or 6) petals; petals equal to number of sepals, distinct, imbricate. Stamens usually twice as many as petals, often dimorphic, sometimes all similar; anthers opening by a single (sometimes by more) terminal or subterminal, truncate or inclined pore, the connective often prolonged below the anther sacs and variously lobed or spurred. Ovary partly to completely inferior, or sometimes ovary distinct with the persistent hypanthium enveloping it, 2–10-celled, placentation axile; ovules numerous; style simple and terminated by a punctiform to capitate stigma.

Fruit: Berries or loculicidal capsules. Seeds linear to ovoid or cochleate; endosperm absent.

Ploidy:

Habitat:

Elevation Range: