Description

Key Characters:

Growth Form: Annual or perennial herbs, sometimes subshrubs or shrubs.

Stems:

Roots:

Leaves: Leaves simple or compound. Alternate or occasionally opposite. Margins entire or toothed, usually lobed or dissected. Petiolate or sessile. Stipules present.

Flowers: Flowers in cymose, often umbellate inflorescences, occasionally axillary and solitary. Flowers bisexual (perfect) or rarely unisexual, actinomorphic or zygomorphic. Calyx of (4)5 sepals; sepals distinct or sometimes connate at base, rarely forming a tube, in Pelargonium the upper one elongated into a spur nectary and usually adnate to pedicel. Corolla of (0,4)5(8) petals; petals distinct, nectary glands alternate with the petals. Stamens 5–15, in 1–3 whorls of 5, sometimes 1–2 of the whorls reduced to staminodes, distinct or connate at base, rarely more; anthers dithecal, opening by longitudinal slits. Ovary superior or nearly so, 5-carpellate, carpels connate around a central column to form a compound ovary with as many cells, fertile portion a lobed ring at base of stylar column, placentation axile; ovules usually 2 per cell, anatropous to campylotropous, usually pendulous; styles 3–5, slender and beak-like, sometimes narrowed below apex; stigmas slender and dry, rarely capitate.

Fruit: Septicidal and elastically dehiscent capsules separating into as many segments as carpels; a portion of the style splitting off from remainder of stylar column and forming an awn that recurves upward from the persistent central column; usually remaining attached to apex; sometimes the awn also becomes spirally coiled; awn usually hygroscopic. Seeds 1–2 per segment; endosperm usually scanty or absent; rarely copious and oily.

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