BIGNONIACEAE

Trees or shrubs, often climbers or lianas, rarely undershrubs or herbs. Leaves usually opposite, decussate, usually compound, occasionally simple, often modified into tendrils, exstipulate; prophylls of axillary buds small, well-developed or absent, with or without glands. Flowers showy, bisexual, +/- zygomorphic, hypogynous, in usually terminal dichasial cymes aggregated into racemes or panicles; bracts absent; bracteoles usually present. Calyx gamosepalous, campanulate, truncate or 5-lobed or 2-lipped. Corolla gamopetalous, usually tubular-ventriculose, obliquely broadly campanulate, tubular or funnelform, somewhat 2-lipped, upper lip 2-lobed and lower 3-lobed; lobes imbricate in bud. Stamens 4(-5), epipetalous, inserted in lower part of corolla tube, didynamous, staminodes present or not; anthers bithecous, thecae parallel or divaricate, dehiscing longitudinally. Disc usually present, annular or cushion-like. Carpels 2, syncarpous; ovary superior, 2-locular, many ovules per loculus, placentation axile; style long, glabrous; stigma of 2 elliptic flattened lobes. Fruit a capsule or sometimes a berry (Kigelia), capsule usually elongate, loculicidal or septicidal 2-valved, valves thin or thick and corky. Seeds usually much compressed and prominently winged (not in Kigelia).

79 genera and about 840 species