Intricately branched shrub 1–3 m. tall, with purplish brown, blackish or yellow-brown stems with pale lenticels; internodes usually short and lateral branches sometimes short and spine-like.. Leaves in whorls of 3, narrowly elliptic, oblong-elliptic, ovate, rhomboid or ± triangular, 0.3–1.8 cm. long, 1.5–10 mm. wide (see note), rounded to shortly acute at the apex, attenuate at the base, entire to 1-toothed on either side, rarely distinctly toothed or occasionally triangular and 3-lobed, glabrous (Somalia) to densely pubescent; petiole 1–5 mm. long.. Inflorescences few or numerous and scattered along lateral twigs but each is actually terminal on branchlets reduced to nodules, ± 7-flowered, sessile; pedicels 2 mm. long, pubescent and with larger hairs.. Calyx cupular, puberulous; tube 1.5 mm. long; teeth shortly triangular, 0.5 mm. long.. Corolla sweetly scented, white to cream or pale yellow; tube 1.1–1.3 cm. long, glandular, pubescent outside, slighdy widened beneath; limb almost bilabiate with 4 subequal lobes ± 3 × 1.8 mm. and a larger obovate-oblong lobe 4–6 mm. long.. Filaments ± 2.5 cm. long, exserted 1.5 cm.. Ovary blackish, 1 mm. long, glabrous but glandular; style 2.5 cm. long with bifid apex.. Fruit yellow turning black, 7–8 mm. long, 6–6.5 mm. wide, with diverging lobes, glabrous or finely pubescent; fruiting calyx 5–6 mm. wide.
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