Description:

• Trees, shrubs or shrublets; bark rough or smooth, sometimes flaking; with cortical vascular bundles in stem; occasionally with yellow pigment in bark
• Leaves alternate, simple, discolorous, mostly glabrous, midrib prominent, penninerved and with reticulate veining and many closely spaced parallel lateral nerves, margin entire to serrate; stipules free or united and ± intrapetiolar, entire or laciniate, early caducous or persistent; axillary and apical buds generally elongated and covered by overlapping brownish scale leaves
• Flowers bisexual, regular, often fragrant, in terminal or axillary panicles, racemes or fascicled cymes, or solitary; pedicels articulated at or near base
• Sepals (4)5, free or nearly so, quincuncial, usually persistent and accrescent and often pinkish red in fruit
• Petals (4)5, free, often shortly stalked, contorted in bud, fugaceous, mostly yellow, sometimes cream to white
• Stamens few to many, free; filaments persistent; anthers 2-thecous, basifixed, linear, opening by longitudinal slits or apical pores, usually caducous
• Carpels 5-15, 1-ovulate, superior, ± free, but united at least by their completely fused to apically free, gynobasic styles; stigmas terminal, usually somewhat enlarged
• Fruit: 1-seeded drupelets on an enlarged receptacle
• Seeds 1 per drupelet; with or without endosperm

Nomenclature:

• Ochnaceae
  • Robson: 224 (1963)
  • Du Toit & Obermeyer: 1 (1976)

Distribution & Notes:

• Global: Genera ± 30, species ± 250, mostly pantropical
• Southern Africa: Genera 2, species 13

References:

• DU TOIT, P.C.V. & OBERMEYER, A.A. 1976. Ochnaceae. Flora of southern Africa 22
• ROBSON, N.K.B. 1963. Ochnaceae. Flora zambesiaca 2

Resources:

• Key to Ochnaceae genera

• Ochnaceae genera: