MUSACEAE
Tree-like herbs, perennial and/or monocarpic, growing from sympodial rhizomes or corm. True aerial stems absent. Leaves basal, in several ranks, differentiated into basal sheath, petiole, and blade; sheaths overlapping and closely packed forming unbranched pseudostem, open, eligulate, summit of petiole not differentiated; blade large, oblong with lateral veins parallel, diverging from prominent midrib. Inflorescences 1 per aerial shoot, projecting from tip of pseudostem, terminal or rarely axillary, cymose. Bracts spirally arranged, often brilliantly coloured, spathe-like, large, ovate to orbicular; bracts of main axis enclosing 12-20-flowered monochasial cymes (cincinni). Flowers unisexual (proximal flowers pistillate, distal flowers staminate), bilaterally symmetric. Perianth 6 in 2 whorls; 3 outer tepals and 2 inner ones united into compound tepal; third inner tepal free. Stamens 5, free, perfect; anthers bithecous, linear; occasionally one rudimentary staminode. Carpels 3, syncarpous; ovary inferior, 3-locular, all locules fertile, ovules many per locule, placentation axile; style terminal, filiform; stigma 3-lobed. Fruits fleshy, a berry, occasionally dehiscent; sepals not persistent in fruit. .
3 genera and 91 species
