Martyniaceae
Y. NASIR
Stewart Herbarium, Gordon College, Rawalpindi.
Annual or perennial herbs. Leaves alternate or opposite, simple, exsti¬pulate. Flowers bisexual, zygomorphic, in terminal or axillary racemes. Sepals 5, united or free. Petals 5, united. Disc glandular. Stamens 4 or 2, epipetalous; staminodes present. Carpels 2, united; ovary unilocular, superior; placentation parietal with numerous ovules. Fruit a loculicidal capsule. Seeds with scanty endosperm.
Chiefly a tropical to subtropical family with 3 genera and 13 species; S. America, Mexico. Represented in W. Pakistan by 1 genus only.
The family is closely allied to the Pedaliaceae, but differs in the unilocu¬lar ovary with parietal placentation.
Acknowledgements: We are grateful to the United States Department of Agriculture for financing this research under P.L. 480. Thanks are also due to Mr. B.L. Burtt of the Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh for his helpful suggestions.
