Shrubs or trees, evergreen, unarmed. Trichomes simple to stellate or scale-like. Leaves opposite or whorled or rarely subopposite or alternate, simple or trifoliolate (rarely some leaves palmately 4-or 5-foliolate). Inflorescences cymose or reduced to fascicles or solitary flowers, axillary and/or infrafoliar. Flowers bisexual, 4-merous. Sepals basally connate, glabrous adaxially, persistent in fruit. Petals distinct or rarely coherent for part of length, narrowly imbricate, erect or spreading-ascending, persistent or subpersistent in fruit. Stamens 8, alternately unequal in length; filaments ±flattened, gradually tapering from base to subulate apex, distinct or rarely connate for part of length, glabrous or at margin woolly, villous, or ciliate, eglandular or with raised glands towards apex, persistent or subpersistent in fruit. Gynoecium a 4-carpelled subapocarpous pistil; ovules 2 per locule; style apical or subapical. Fruit of 1–4 basally connate follicles, these ellipsoid to obovoid, 4–10 mm long, rarely with short stylar beak; exocarp subwoody; abortive carpels persistent; ventral endocarp membranaceous to subfleshy, tearing free from rest of endocarp and ±persistent on seed as a suborbicular to triangular piece of tissue; dorsilateral endocarp cartilaginous, glabrous, separate and usually expelled from dehisced fruit. Seeds solitary or in pairs, ±ovoid or sometimes irregularly shaped due to crowding, c. 1/3–3/4 as long as follicle, expelled from dehisced fruit; testa thin and brittle, with sclerotesta, the surface variously uneven, dull to rather lustrous, brown to black; endosperm copious. Embryo straight; cotyledons flattened, elliptic; hypocotyl terminal, considerably narrower than cotyledons.
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