Chloranthaceae

Chloranthaceae is a family of flowering plants (angiosperms), the only family in the order Chloranthales. It is not closely related to any other family of flowering plants, and is among the early-diverging lineages in the angiosperms. They are woody or weakly woody plants occurring in Southeast Asia, the Pacific, Madagascar, Central and South America, and the West Indies. The family consists of four extant genera, totalling about 77 known species according to Christenhusz and Byng in 2016. Some species are used in traditional medicine. The type genus is Chloranthus. The fossil record of the family, mostly represented by pollen such as Clavatipollenites, extends back to the dawn of the history of flowering plants in the Early Cretaceous, and has been found on all continents.

==Description== Chloranthaceae are fragrant shrubs or herbaceous plants, that only produce new side branches on the new growth. The stems are mostly cylindrical, with solid internodes, thickened nodes in many species, that carry evergreen leaves arranged in pairs on opposite sides of the stem, with stipules that have merged with that of the opposing leaf. The small flowers are seated directly on the axis of the inflorescence. Petals are absent in this family, and sometimes so are sepals. The flowers can be either hermaphrodite or of separate sexes. The fruit is a drupe or berry, consisting of one carpel.