Tree 25-55 m high, 30-100(-200) cm dbh, fluted at base or forming tall and steep buttresses up to 8 m high, spreading for up to 3 m at the base. Bark smooth or sparsely scaly, grey; inner bark pale yellow or orange-brown, soft, granular, with copious white latex. Branchlets glabrous. Leaves in whorls of (3-)4-6; petiole 0-5(-20) mm long, laterally compressed, or shallowly caniculate above, slightly winged, with deltoid or scale-like colleters in the axils; blade coriaceous, spathulate, sometimes obovate, 4.3-13 by 1.5-4.3 cm, 1.7-3.4(-4.2) times as long as wide, apex rounded, sometimes retuse, base acute or decurrent onto the petiole, rarely obtuse, glabrous on both sides, not glaucous beneath; 18-30 pairs of secondary veins, straight, forming an angle of (70-) 80-90° with the midrib, 1.5-4(-6) mm from each other; tertiary venation admedial ramified, usually inconspicuous on both sides. Inflorescence 3-9 cm long, composed of two bunches of densely clustered flowers; pedicels 0-1 mm long, puberulous or densely pubescent. Bracts and bracteoles ovate or triangular, sepal-like, up to 2(-3) mm long, ciliate, pubescent outside, laxly puberulous around the apex inside, glabrous at the base, acute or obtuse. Flowers fragrant. Sepals connate at the base for 0.2-0.4(-0.6) mm, ovate, 1.5-2(-3.5) by 0.5-1.2 mm, obtuse, pubescent outside, laxly puberulous around the apex and glabrous at the base inside, ciliate, erect, very often spreading when dried. Corolla lobes sinistrorse; white, 8-13 mm long in the mature bud and forming an ovoid head, 2-3.6 by 1.1-1.6 mm, glabrous outside; tube almost cylindrical, 7-10 by 0.8-1 mm; lobes ovate, 3-5 by 2-3.2 mm, 1.2-1.5(-2.5) times as long as wide, apex obtuse or rounded, pilose with white hairs at the extreme base inside. Stamens inserted at 5.2-8.4 mm from the base; anthers ovate, 0.7-0.9 by 0.3-0.4 mm, obtuse. Pistil glabrous, (6-)7.5-8.9 mm long; ovary ovoid, 0.8-1.2 by 0.7-0.9 mm, of 2 carpels, with or without a disk-like thickening at the base (if present c. 0.25 mm high); style 5-8 mm long; style head 0.4-0.7 mm high, with a short robust cleft stigmoid apical part c. 0.1(-0.3) mm high. Fruit a pair of follicles, 10-20(-40) cm by 1.5-2 mm, shortly pubescent or tomentose, with a blunt or narrowly acute apex. Seeds oblong, 4-4.9 by 1-1.2 mm, ends rounded, glabrous on both sides, longest cilia 8-12 mm long, reduced and becoming shorter (sometimes glabrous) toward the margins.
Home