Convolvulaceae

views updated

Convolvulaceae A family mostly of twining herbs, but with some trees and shrubs, in which the flowers are regular, with 5 sepals, and a 5-lobed corolla which is often showy, bell- or funnel-shaped, and hardly lobed. There are 5 stamens fixed to the corolla tube. The ovary is superior, and 1- to 4-celled. The fruit is a capsule or (rarely) fleshy. There are 58 genera, with about 1650 species, occurring mainly in tropical but also in temperature regions.

More From encyclopedia.com