Description:

• Perennial herbs or banana-like trees with true stems (in contrast to Musaceae which have stems formed by sheathing leaf bases)
• Leaves distichous, sheathing at base, usually large to very large, channelled down face, rarely reduced to a bladeless petiole
• Inflorescence: peduncles arising from axils of leaves, producing a ± boat-shaped coriaceous bract at apex; bract sheathing a cincinnate inflorescence, sometimes secondary inflorescences produced from axis of first
• Flowers bisexual, irregular
• Sepals 3, petaloid, lowest boat-shaped towards base, attenuate above, keeled; laterals attenuate
• Petals 3, ± free, 2 lower connivent and forming a ± sagittate blade, with a central channel containing stamens and style; third (upper) petal much smaller
• Stamens 5; anthers 2-thecous, with parallel thecae with longitudinal slits
• Ovary inferior, 3-locular, with many axile ovules in each locule; style with 3 linear stigmatic branches
• Fruit a woody, 3-angled, loculicidal capsule
• Seeds few, globose with a woolly aril
• x = 7, 11

Nomenclature:

• Strelitziaceae
  • Wright: 313 (1913) under Scitamineae
  • Hutchinson: 719 (1973)

Distribution & Notes:

• Global: Genera , species ± 7, tropical America, Madagascar
• Southern Africa: Genus 1, species 5

References:

• HUTCHINSON, J. 1973. Families of flowering plants, edn 3. Clarendon Press, Oxford
• WRIGHT, C.H. 1913. Scitamineae. Flora capensis 5,3

Resources:

• Strelitziaceae genus: Strelitzia