STERCULIACEAE

 

Trees, shrubs or herbs; leaves alternate, mostly simple, entire, stipules caduceus; flowers generally bisexual and the plants monoecious in sterculia and actinomorphic or less often zygomorphic, entamerous, usually axillary in various inflorescence types, the perianth often uniseriate, the sepals 3-5, basally connate, valvate, the petals small and reduced or lacing hypogynous, sometimes adnate to base of androecium, contorted in bud; stamens in 2 whorls monadelphously connate into a single tube or all distinct, the anthers 2 celled, dehiscing longitudinally, rarely cohering apically; pistil 1, ovary superior, 4-5 loculed , placentation axile,  ovules 2- many, seeds with straight or curved embryo and abundant endosperm.