Lachnaea

Shrubs or shrublets. Leaves decussate or alternate, sessile or subsessile, entire, amphistomatic or epistomatic. Flowers sessile or pedicelled, solitary and terminal or in terminal, indeterminate capitula, or bracteate or ebracteate umbels. Calyx: hypanthium circumscissile, portion above plane of circumscission cylindrical to cyathiform, rarely cyathiform with a sigmoid curve at base, scales present below stamen attachment, portion below plane of circumscission ovoid to obovoid. Sepals 4, almost equal to distinctly unequal, petaloid. Petals 0. Stamens 8 in 2 whorls of 4, outer whorl exserted, episepalous or arising from or near rim of hypanthium, inner whorl exserted or semi-exserted, arising from rim to thirdway down hypanthium; filaments variable in length; anthers basifixed, introrse, ellipsoid to oblate-spheroid. Scales 8, exserted or enclosed, in single row below antipetalous stamens. Disc 0. Ovary sessile, 1-locular, with single ovule; style arising laterally; stigma either penicillate or conical or capitate and papillate or capitate and elongate-papillate. Fruit an achene, enclosed in persistent base of hypanthium. x = 9.