Sapindaceae

Abstract

Trees, treelets, shrubs, lianas or herbaceous climbers; cork superficial; stems of climbing species (i.e., Serjania, Paullinia, Urvillea, Houssayanthus, and Thinouia) usually with multiple vascular cylinders. Leaves pinnately or ternately compound or palmate, or rarely simple, alternate, rarely opposite; proximal leaflets seldom reduced, reflexed, and covering the stem to resemble a pair of stipules (pseudostipules), distal leaflet in most arboreal and shrubby species rudimentary; stipules present only in climbing species, minute to large. Inflorescences axillary, terminal, pseudo-terminal, cauliflorous or ramiflorous, thyrso-paniculate, racemose, spicate, or fasciculate, or flowers solitary. Flowers 5-merous, regular, or less often 4-merous and obliquely zygomorphic, bisexual or more often functionally unisexual by reduction (plants monoecious or rarely dioecious); sepals distinct or connate at base; petals usually white or light yellow, rarely 0, usually ornamented by an adaxial appendage; appendages variously shaped, mostly petaloid, simple, bifurcate, or hood-shaped, basally adnate to the petal or just a prolongation of petal margins, concealing the nectary; disk extrastaminal, annular or unilateral, often lobed, cup-shaped or dish-shaped, very rarely on both sides of the stamens or intrastaminal; stamens (3–)5–8(–30); filaments distinct or connate at base, equal or unequal in length; anthers dorsifixed or basifixed, introrse, opening by longitudinal slits; sterile stamens present in pistillate flowers; gynoecia syncarpous, (1–)3(–8)-carpellate; carpels with 1, 2, or exceptionally many (7–8 in Xanthoceras, 8 in Magonia) ovules; style terminal or exceptionally gynobasic (Deinbollia), 2–3-branched, or with simple, 2–3-lobed, capitate stigma, sometimes (Acer) the style branches elongate and the style nearly 0; pistil usually rudimentary in staminate flowers. Fruit a septifragal or loculicidal capsule, a schizocarp with winged or non-winged mericarps, baccate or rarely a drupe. Seeds sessile or exceptionally (Distichostemon) subtended by a funiculus, variously shaped, exalate or rarely winged, naked, with a partial to complete sarcotesta, or an arillode (arising from the integuments); embryo oily or starchy, lacking endosperm, notorhizal or lomatorhizal with straight, curved or plicate, fleshy cotyledons, the radicle often separated by a deep fold in the testa that forms a radicular pocket.