Description

Key Characters:

Growth Form: Trees, shrubs, or occasionally herbs, usually glabrous.

Stems:

Roots:

Leaves: Leaves simple or rarely compound (pinnate). Alternate. Usually with numerous, parallel lateral veins. Petiolate or sessile. Stipules present.

Flowers: Flowers in terminal or axillary racemose or cymose inflorescences, rarely solitary. Flowers bisexual (perfect), actinomorphic or nearly so. Calyx of (3–)5(–12) sepals; sepals imbricate, usually persistent. Corolla of (4)5(–10), distinct, convolute or occasionally imbricate. Stamens 5, 10, or numerous, sometimes borne on an elongate androgynophore, often surrounded by 1 to several rows of staminodes, these sometimes dimorphic; anthers dithecal, opening by terminal pores or occasionally by longitudinal slits. Ovary superior, (1)2–15-carpellate, with as many cells, sometimes borne on an elongate androgynophore or receptacle, ± deeply lobed, or carpels sometimes distinct at base and connate only by their common style, placentation axile or parietal; ovules (1)numerous per cell, anatropous or nearly campylotropous; style 1; stigma ± inconspicuous.

Fruit: Berry-like and carpels separating as distinct cocci or drupelets on an enlarged; usually red receptacle; or fruit a septicidal capsules; rarely indehiscent. Seeds usually winged; ± with endosperm.

Ploidy:

Habitat:

Elevation Range: