Description:

• Trees or shrubs, variously hairy
• Leaves alternate or clustered on short side branches, sessile or shortly petiolate, obovate to orbicular, usually with entire margins; variously hairy or if surface glabrous then with hairs densely arranged along margin
• Flowers white or blue to mauve, bisexual or polygamous, sessile or pedicellate in much branched, axillary or terminal cymose inflorescences, the individual cymules mostly scorpioid
• Calyx with a shallow tube; lobes 5, lanceolate, hairy outside but glabrous inside
• Corolla with tube very short or longer than lobes; lobes (4)5(-7), imbricate, oblong, spreading or reflexed
• Stamens: filaments linear, arising in throat of corolla tube, usually exserted; anthers oblong, lobed at base
• Ovary 2-locular, 2-ovuled or 4-locular with a single ovule at or above middle of each locule; style terminal, flattened, 2-fid with stigmas capitate
• Fruit subglobose, drupaceous; with 4 1-seeded stones
• x = 13, 8 (6, 10) (polyploidy)

Nomenclature:

• Ehretia P.Browne
  • Browne: 168 (1756)
  • Linnaeus: 936 (1759)
  • Candolle: 502 (1845)
  • Bentham: 840 (1876)
  • Boissier: 124 (1879)
  • Gürke: 87 (1897)
  • Wright: 4 (1904)
  • Taton: 19 (1971)
  • Martins: 75 (1990)
  • Miller: 20 (1991)
  • Verdcourt: 33 (1991)
  • Riedl: 91 (1997)

Distribution & Notes:

• Global: Species ± 75, in the tropics of both Old and New World, particularly in Africa and Asia, a few in tropical America and West Indies
• Southern Africa: Species 3, widespread