Liana, up to 25 m by 10 cm, sometimes an erect shrub (up to 5 m high), or a small tree. Branches densely ferruginous-tomentose, more or less glabrescent. Leaves 3-5-jugate, petiole, rhachis, and petiolules densely tomentose when young, rather early glabrescent; petiolules 2-3 mm. Leaflets oblong-obovate to oblanceolate, 3.5-20 by 1½-8 cm (becoming longer and relatively narrower upwards), stiff chartaceous to coriaceous, often bullate, when young appressed-sericeous-pubescent above, glabrescent, beneath rather shaggy ferruginous-pilose on midrib and nerves; base rounded, slightly peltate; apex up to 1 cm long blunt-acuminate; nerves 5-8 pairs, gradually curved, looped and joined near the margin, veins mainly transverse to the nerves. Inflorescences c. 20-30 cm long, rather narrow, sparingly branched, few-flowered; flowers clustered, densely brown-tomentose. Bracts cylindrical, curved, thickened at the apex, 1-2 cm. Sepals oblong, slightly complicate, blunt, 4-4.5 by 1.5 mm, slightly keeled, densely brown-tomentose on both surfaces. Petals linear-spathulate, blunt, 7-8 mm long, rather stiff, glabrous, punctate. Stamens connate for 1 mm, all fertile; filaments with a few scattered glandular hairs. Fruits ellipsoid, straight, 3.5-7 by 2-3 cm, not or up to 1 cm long stipitate, beak minute, near the apex; pericarp outside densely, minutely crimson-tomentose, glabrescent and wrinkled, woody, c. 1.5 mm thick, inside ± ferruginous-tomentose.
In primary forests and bamboo thickets, mainly in more open places, along the forest borders, river-banks, and on the rocky seashore up to c. 200 m. Fl. Dec.-Feb. (June, Sept.), fr. (April) June-Aug. (Oct.).
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