Climbing shrubs or vines, often epiphytic, with dimorphic branches and leaves; the sterile, juvenile branches creeping, appressed to the substrate, and attached by roots; the fertile branches free, mostly pendulous, often angular, and pro-vided with wartlike lenticels. Leaves distichous, those of the sterile; creeping branches small, thin, sessile, mostly cordate; those of the fertile branches dimor-phic, larger and thicker, often with a drip-tip. Inflorescences mostly umbelliform, sometimes racemose, the apical (central) flowers abortive with only the bracts (nectaries) well-developed, the fertile flowers without bracts. Flowers pedicellate, the bracteoles sepaloid, mostly appressed to the calyx; sepals 4, decussate, the in-ner 2 smaller, persistent; petals connate into a deciduous cap; stamens 7-many, free; ovary 4-20-loculed, the ovules numerous. Fruit capsular, mesocarp pulpy, often loculicidally and septifragally dehiscent from the base; seeds numerous.
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