Tree, 6-28 m by 0.2-1 m ø; bark yellowish or greyish brown, smooth, densely lenticellate. Innovations with dense stellate tomentum. Branchlets soon glabrous, dark purplish coloured, with sparse minute lenticels; terminal bud ovoid or ellipsoid, 2-3 by 1 mm, scales ovate-or linear-acute, 2-3 by 1 mm. Stipules linear-acute, 3-4 by 1 mm, very soon caducous. Leaves 6-16 by 2-5 cm (index 2.3-4.2), widest below the middle to rarely above, discolorous, above green-brownish and often glossy, glabrous, beneath dull brownish with adpressed scale-like stellate tomentum (magnification 35!); base acute to rarely rounded, slightly decurrent,± asymmetrical; apex mostly gradually tapering and acuminate with a sharp or blunt tip ½-2 cm; midrib and nerves on both surfaces brownish and more or less prominent; nerves 7-10 pairs, ascending, subparallel, arcuating and disappearing towards the margin, at an angle of 50-70°; reticulation obscure on both surfaces; petiole (3-)5-10(-20) mm, adaxially flat. Male rachis 10-25 cm rather densely tomentose; bracts and bracteoles ovate-acute, 2 by 1 mm, densely hairy; ♂ flowers in clusters of 3-7, perianth lobes 1 mm long, rounded or acute, densely hairy outside; stamens 12, filaments 2-2½ mm, glabrous, anthers 0.2-0.25 mm long; pistillode rounded-triangular, 1-1½ mm ø, densely woolly pubescent. Female rachis 10-20 cm, rather densely tomentose; bracts and bracteoles ovate-acute, 1½-2 by 1 mm; ♀ flowers in clusters of 3 or sometimes solitary, perianth lobes ½-1 mm long, rounded or acute, densely hairy outside; staminodes 12, rudimentary; styles 3, conical, recurved, 1-2 mm. Young cupule sub-sessile to 7 mm stalked, obovoid-globose, covered all over with thick, scale-like appendages. Ripe cupule pear-shaped or depressed-subglobose, 2-3 by 3-4 cm, with two rounded lobes more or less symmetrical; surface with undulate ridges of short, pointed tubercles, hoary to velvety with fulvous to brownish hairs; peduncle 5-7 mm long, 3-4 mm thick. Fruits 3 (rarely 1?) per cupule, the scar covering about half the surface, the remainder free and red-brown, with golden hairs; central fruit 1½ by 2 cm, lateral ones as large to slightly smaller.
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A medium sized tree. The leaves are alternate pointed at both ends and from 4 to 15 cm long. The fruit grows in bunches. The individual fruit have spiny coverings with chestnut shaped nuts about 1.5 cm long.
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