Plants in the polygalaceae, or milkwort family have flowers formed of three small, greenish outer sepals, two large, petal-like inner sepals and (usually) three small petals, which are fused to form a tube, fringed at the mouth and containing eight short stamens. Leaves tend to be narrow and lance-shaped, without stipules. There are five species in the British isles, all in the polygala genus.
