Gesneraceae
A natural order of herbs or shrubs, rarely trees, often growing from scaly tubers. Flowers showy; corolla variously coloured, often scarlet, violet, or blue, rarely white; calyx half adhering, five-parted; stamens two or four. Leaves opposite, usually wrinkled. There are about seventy-one genera and 700 species, natives of various parts of the world, chiefly the warmer regions of America. Sometimes the name Cyrtandraceae is given to this order. Illustrative genera are: Achimenes, Besleria, Cyrtandra, Gesnera, Gloxinia, and Streptocarpus.