Annual or perennial,
erect herbs. Leaves variable; lamina ranging from
entire to digitate. Flowers solitary in the axils with prominent
extra-floral nectaries at the base. Corolla white, pink dark red
or purple; limb ± 2-lobed. Fruit a dehiscent
non-woody capsule, beaked at the apex, but without
sideways-directed horns. Seeds winged or with a double,
rarely single, edge. Derivation of name: Greek and Latin name for the edible Sesame Worldwide: 15 species in the tropical Old World and South Africa Zimbabwe: 6 taxa. |