Tamaricaceae - Tamarisk family

Shrubs or subshrubs, rarely small trees; xerophytes; rheophytes or halophytes; sometimes ericoidous. Leaves often small and scale-like; simple, alternate; sometimes sheathing; margins entire; salt excreting glands. Inflorescence solitary flowers, racemes, spikes or panicles. Flowers bisexual; actinomorphic; fleshy nectar disc. Petals free; imbricate; persistent; basal scale appendages; usually pink or white. Ovary superior; carpels; fused. Fruit loculicidal capsule. Seeds often hairy.

Worldwide: 5 genera c. 85 species in Eurasia and Africa

Zimbabwe: 1 cultivated genus and 2 cultivated taxa.