Polycarena

Annual herbs; stems leafy, pubescence always patent, hairs gland-tipped. Leaves opposite below, alternate above, rarely rosulate, mostly linear to oblanceolate, sometimes spathulate or elliptical, rarely ovate, entire or few-toothed, usually glandular-pubescent, rarely glabrous. Flowers in racemes, sometimes congested, always erect. Bracts not sharply differentiated from leaves, adnate to pedicel and calyx, only anterior lobes and sometimes uppermost part of tube free. Calyx tubular, (4)5-lobed, bilabiate, membranous, slightly accrescent; lobes often shallow or shorter than sinus between lips; rarely anterior lip entire. Corolla tubular, usually bilabiate, rarely regular; membranous, persistent; tube glabrous or pubescent outside; posterior lip usually 2-lobed, exterior in bud; anterior lip usually 3-lobed; lobes entire, often +/- equal, throat usually with orange/yellow patch at base of posterior lip or all round mouth and there either bearded with clavate hairs or sometimes glabrous. Stamens 4, +/- didynamous, sometimes reduced to 2, or 3, or 1 in chasmogamous flowers, arising in throat of corolla tube; anterior pair exceeding posterior pair; either all exserted or anterior pair well exserted, posterior pair just visible in mouth; posterior filaments decurrent down tube in most species; anthers synthecate, dorsifixed. Nectary adnate to base of ovary on shorter side. Ovary bilocular, elliptical, glandular-puberulous on upper part; ovules few to many per locule; style filiform, passing gradually into lingulate stigma with two marginal bands of stigmatic papillae, exserted. Fruit a septicidal capsule with a short loculicidal split at top of each valve, glandular-puberulous at apex. Seeds 4-40 per locule, usually strongly, sometimes weakly, 3-winged or 3-angled; buff-coloured; testa delicate, translucent, loosely enveloping endosperm. x = 7 (1 report).