Shrubs or trees, evergreen, unarmed. Trichomes simple. Buds naked. Leaves opposite, imparipinnate and/or trifoliolate (occasional leaves bifoliolate or simple), with pocket-domatia in axils of secondary veins. Inflorescences paniculate, terminal or terminal and axillary. Flowers bisexual, 4-merous. Sepals basally connate, deciduous in fruit. Petals distinct, narrowly imbricate, deciduous in fruit. Stamens 8, alternately unequal in length. Gynoecium subapocarpous, 4-carpelled; carpels in ovary without prominent glands; ovules 6–8 per locule; style subapical; stigma punctiform or capitellate. Fruit of 1–4 basally connate follicles; exocarp woody, nearly glabrous to sparsely hispidulous or minutely pilose; abortive carpels persistent; ventral endocarp membranaceous to subfleshy, tearing free from rest of endocarp and ±persistent on seed as an elliptic piece of tissue; dorsilateral endocarp cartilaginous, nearly glabrous to sparsely pubescent, separate and usually expelled from dehisced fruit. Seeds solitary, expelled from dehisced fruit; testa brown, smooth, polished, membranaceous, without sclerotesta; endosperm scant or lacking. Embryo straight; cotyledons plano-convex, elliptic in outline; hypocotyl terminal, considerably narrower than cotyledons.
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