Suffrutescent annual or perennial herbs, subshrubs, or shrubs; erect, ascending or decumbent; young stems tomentose, the hairs varied, mostly stellate, sparsely pubescent in age. Leaves simple, petiolate, stipulate. Flowers bisexual, rarely polygamous. Inflorescences 2–4-flowered, axillary (FTEA) or terminal cymes, occasionally appearing subumbellate or racemose (not in FTEA), or flowers solitary; peduncle and pedicels tomentose; epicalyx bracts 3, close to the calyx, sometimes fused at base, persistent, either linear to ovate or broadly ovate and not accrescent nor becoming membranous in fruit or obovate, cordate to reniform and enlarging and becoming membranous in fruit. Floral buds with sepal tips either free or confluent. Sepals 5, almost free, with a narrow patch of glandular tissue at the base of each lobe, persistent, sometimes accrescent. Petals symmetrical to strongly asymmetrical, yellow, usually opening in the afternoon, caducous or marcescent, sometimes persistent with fruit after falling. Stamens and staminodes united into a very short staminal tube, stamens 5, alternating with 5 ligulate staminodes. Ovary syncarpous, 5-locular, densely stellate-pubescent, 1–12 (or more?) ovules per locule; style apically divided or lobed; stigmatic lobes 5, slender. Capsule spheroid to ovoid, hardened to chartaceous, pubescent, loculicidally dehiscent; endocarp glabrous or pubescent; 1–many seeds per locule. Seeds ± trigonal to turbinate, 3-(more)-angled, testa ± smooth, sparsely to densely tuberculate, or muricate, elaisome present or absent; endosperm abundant; cotyledons folded and bipartite.