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Trees or shrubs. Leaves alternate or occasionally subopposite, coriaceous, pinnately nerved or 3-nerved from near or at the base. Flowers hermaphrodite in subterminal or axillary panicles. Perianth-tube ovoid, turbinate or subcylindric, accrescent and constricted above after flowering; lobes in 2 whorls of 3, subequal, deciduous. Fertile stamens in 3 whorls, those of the outer 2 whorls with introrse anthers, of the third inserted on the upper part of the perianth-tube and with extrorse anthers and filaments with 2 sessile or stipitate glands; anthers all 2-thecous; a fourth whorl of ovoid or sagittate staminodes, stipitate or attenuate at the base. Ovary sessile, enclosed in the tube; style shortly exserted. Fruit globose or oblong, enclosed in the enlarged hardened or fleshy tube, smooth or ribbed; pericarp hard or membranous; testa membranous not or hardly separable from the pericarp.
Trees or shrubs, evergreen. Bud scales few, leaflike. Leaves alternate, rarely subopposite, usually pinninerved, rarely triplinerved. Flowers bisexual, small, arranged into a subterminal and usually short panicle. Perianth tube turbinate or ovoid, persistent, contracted on top after caducous. Fertile stamens 9, inserted on throat of perianth tube; filaments of 1st and 2nd whorls glandless, those of 3rd whorl each with 2 glands at base; anthers 2-celled; cells of 1st and 2nd whorls introrse, those of 3rd whorl extrorse. Staminodes of innermost whorl, shortly stalked, glandless. Ovary sessile, enveloped by perianth tube; style sublinear; stigma small, inconspicuous, rarely peltate. Fruit drupelike, globose, ellipsoid, or oblong, wholly enveloped by fleshy or hard and dilated perianth tube but leaving a small mouth on top, smooth or many angled outside.
Fertile stamens 9 in 3 whorls, with staminodes in the fourth (innermost) whorl; filaments very short (in African species); anthers 2-celled, those of the 2 outer whorls opening introrsely (in African species), the third (inner) whorl opening extrorsely (in African species); filaments of inner whorls with a pair of sessile or stalked glands at the base.
Fruit drupaceous, globose or ellipsoid, 1-seeded, completely enclosed within the hard or fleshy accrescent receptacle with only a minute orifice at the apex; pericarp membranaceous or crustaceous, and can usually be separated from the receptacle.
Ovary sessile, ovoid or ellipsoid, slender, glabrous, enclosed in the receptacle; style cylindric, slender; stigma slightly expanded.
Leaves alternate, sometimes sub-opposite, pinnately-nerved or 3-nerved from near or at the base.
Flowers hermaphrodite; pedicels 3-bracteolate (in African species).
Cymes paniculate, few-to many-flowered, axillary and subterminal.
Receptacle ± cylindrical, constricted in upper half, persistent.
Tepals 6, subequal, erect or ± patent, caducous.
Staminodes shortly stipitate, ovate, acute.
Seed globose; testa membranaceous.
Evergreen trees or shrubs.
