Herbs perennial, rarely shrubby or treelike, often with bulbs, corms, rhizomes, or tubers. Leaves basal or cauline, often narrow, margin entire or spiny. Inflorescence a terminal spike, umbel, raceme, panicle, or flowers solitary. Flowers bisexual, actinomorphic or zygomorphic, usually subtended by 1 to several spathaceous involucres. Perianth segments 6, in 2 whorls, free or connate to form a short tube, with or without a corona. Stamens 6, inserted at perianth throat or at base of segments; filaments sometimes basally connate; anther dorsifixed or basifixed, mostly introrse. Ovary inferior, 3-loculed; ovules few to many per locule; placentation axile. Style slender; stigma capitate or 3-lobed. Fruit a capsule, usually loculicidal, sometimes dehiscing irregularly, rarely a berry. Seeds with endosperm.

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Flowers usually showy, bisexual actinomorphic, solitary to many and umbellate at the top of the scape, subtended by an involucre of two or more (rarely only one) usually membranous bracts

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• 1
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Perianth inserted below or usually above the ovary, petaloid, often withering and persisting, with or without a tube; segments or lobes 6, in 2 series, all equal and similar or the inner smaller or larger than the outer; corona often present

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• 1
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Herbs with a tunicated bulbous rootstock or rarely a rhizome

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• 1
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Leaves few from the base of the stem or apex of the bulb, more or less linear, with parallel nerves and transverse secondary nerves

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• 1
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Ovules mostly numerous in each loculus

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• 1
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Stamens 6, opposite the segments, hypogynous or inserted on the tube or towards the base of the segments; filaments free or expanded at the base and connate and forming a "false" corona; anthers 2-locular, introrse, basifixed or versatile, opening by slits lengthwise

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• 1
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Ovary superior or inferior, 3-locular, with usually axile placentas; style slender, with a capitate or 3-lobed stigma

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• 1
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Seeds with fleshy endosperm and small embryo, sometimes winged

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• 1
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Fruit a capsule or a berry

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• 1
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Herbs with bulbs or rhizomes

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• 2
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Leaves in a basal rosette from the apex of the bulb or rhizome; petioles, if present, sometimes sheathing to form a false stem; blade simple, entire, linear to lanceolate or strap-shaped

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• 2
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Scape leafless, central or lateral in relation to the leaves, with 1–many flowers in an umbel-like inflorescence, subtended by an involucre of 1–many bracts and with ephemeral hyaline bracts between the flowers

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• 2
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Flowers showy, bisexual, 3-merous, regular or less often slightly irregular

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• 2
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Tepals in 2 series, equal to subequal, inserted above the ovary, free or partly united into a short or long tube; corona sometimes present

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• 2
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Stamens 3 + 3, opposite the perianth-segments, inserted at their base or in the tube; filaments free, partly fused with the perianth or united into a cup (false corona) at the base; anthers basifixed (not in East Africa) or dorsifixed, often versatile, introrse, opening lengthwise by slits

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• 2
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Ovary 3-locular, each locule with (1–2–) many axile ovules; style long and slender, with capitate or 3-lobed stigma

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• 2
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Fruit a capsule, often loculicidal, or a berry

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• 2
]. 

Seeds globose or flattened, sometimes winged, with fleshy endosperm and small embryo

Source: [
• 2
].