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Dioecious or rarely monoecious trees or shrubs with spirally inserted (opposite in Microcachrys ) oblong to scale-like leaves (functionally replaced by flattened branches in Phyllocladus ). Male cones terminal on axillary shoots or rarely axillary, comprising numerous, spirally arranged sporophylls each with 2 abaxial microsporangia; pollen grains winged (saccate). Female cones terminal on branches or terminal on short axillary shoots, comprising 1-many fleshy or dry, but not woody, fertile scales with fully adnate bracts, each with 1 (or 2) erect or inverted ovules; scales persistent or deciduous; scales and axes fleshy or dry, not woody at maturity. Germination phanerocotular. Cotyledons 2.
Trees and shrubs with linear to lanceolate or scale-leaves, usually dioecious, the males with small cones or spikes, the females with the cones small or reduced to 1 or 2 fertile scales. Ovules erect or inverted, with the sterile base of the seed scale complex (epimatium) usually ± folded over the ovule and the base of the bracts and cone axis sometimes swelling to form a fleshy receptacle
Plants dioecious or monoecious; male flowers in terminal or axillary strobili, the stamens usually many, the anthers 2-celled; female flower solitary or paired, axillary or terminal, or in strobili with megasporophylls 1-ovuled and bracteate; seed solitary, or paired; cotyledons 2
Staminate strobili terminal or axillary, forming single or fascicled usually bracteate catkin-like cones; fertile scales subpeltate, bearing 2 pollen-sacs towards the base of the blade, pollen grains winged
Trees, or shrubby in some species; leaves persistent, alternate or opposite, or absent and represented by phylloclades, very variable from acicular to broadly lanceolate
Leaves linear, lanceolate, narrowly ovate or more rarely scale-like, spirally arranged and sometimes disposed in one plane or apparently opposite
Ovule solitary, erect or inverted, soon becoming enclosed by a secondary integument variously developed from part of the strobilus
Evergreen trees or shrubs, usually dioecious (always in our area)
Female strobilus small with usually only 1 or 2 fertile scales
