Annual or perennial, erect or ascending, unarmed or spiny herbs, shrubs or rarelysmall trees, with simple, branched, stellate or glandular hairs. Leaves alternate orrarely subopposite, simple and entire to lobed, pinnatisect or imparipinnate, petiolate,exstipulate. Inflorescence a terminal cyme but usually appearing lateral by growth ofa lateral bud an extra-axillary cyme, appearing racemose, umbellate or paniculate orrarely reduced to a solitary flower. Flowers regular, bisexual or rarelyandromonoecious; Calyx campanulate, rotate or campanulate, (4-)5(-10)-lobed, white,violet, purple or blue; stamens (4-)5, inserted on the corolla throat, alternating withthe corolla lobes, anthers often connivent, opening by terminal pores or slits; ovarysuperior, 2(-4)-locular with many ovules in each cell, style simple, stigma capitate orbifid, Fruit a usually globose berry, with a persistent and sometimes enlarged calyx,few to many-seeded. Seeds orbicular to subreniform, compressed, often minutelypitted or reticulate. Seedling with epigeal germination; cotyledons emergent, ovate tolinier-lanceolate. (Indonesia)