Burmanniaceae
Apteria
Representative image.
Kingdom: Plantae Rank: Genus Parent: Burmanniaceae Status: Valid
Morphological Description
Diagnosis: Saprophytic herb, small, weak, inconspicuous. Stems reddish-brown. Leaves alternate, scale-like, greenish-brown to reddish-brown. Inflorescence a few-branched raceme with short-pedicillate flowers. Flowers bisexual, tubular, somewhat irregular, lavender to purple, with two whorls of perianth, the inner whorl with elongated, acuminate apices, and an exterior whitish nerve. Infructescence racemose, thin, weak. Fruit a tiny capsule, brown when mature, the stigma persistent. Seeds numerous per fruit. Distribution: southern United States, Central and South America.