Small trees, 5-20 m tall. Leaves: petioles 0.5-6.5 cm long, not swollen at base; lamina obovate-oblong, 13-57 by 5.5-26 cm, chartaceous, base slightly confluent onto petiole, margin entire, slightly revolute, apex cuspidate, caudate or obtuse, acumen 5-10 mm long, lower surface glabrous; midrib prominulous above, prominent beneath, primary veins 9-23 pairs, brochidodromous, merging through network of veins 2-5 mm from margin, prominulous on both surfaces, intercostal veins prominulous on both surfaces. Cataphylls few, triangular or lanceolate, 5-12 by 3-4 mm, fimbriate, acute. Inflorescences terminal racemes, pendulous, pulverulent or glabrous, 20-47 cm, c. 30-flowered. Calyx closed in bud with a large circular pore, sometimes rupturing into lobes, 6-10 mm high, green to purple. Flowers sessile or with pedicels 2-10 mm long; hypanthium subtetragonous, 5-8 by 4-6 by 4-6 mm, puberulous; petals 4-5, elliptic, 3.5-4.5 by 1.5-2.25 cm, cream tinged purple; stamens cream or white tinged red at apex, staminal whorls 8-10, the inner one with poorly developed anthers or staminodal, staminal tube 5-9 mm high, staminodia 1.5-2.25 cm; disc a flat wide ring, c. 2 mm high; ovary 4-locular, 1-3 ovules per locule; style 4-7 cm long. Fruits subtetragonous, broadly obovoid, 7-8-ribbed, truncate, tapering to base, 4-7.5 by 1.5-3.5 by 2-3 cm. Seeds ovoid or spindle-shaped, fissured, 2-4 by 1-1.75 cm.
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