Climbers, summer annual. Stems green to purplish, 2-5 m, branched, sharply angular, very weak and squashy. Petiole 0.3-1 (lower leaves to 5 cm) with broad membranous base; leaf blade pale green and glaucous abaxially, oblong-ovate in outline, 4-14 cm (tendril excepted), pinnate, with 3-5 alternate pinnae, terminating in a long thin branched cirrose tendril; pinnae once or usually twice ternate; ultimate leaflets ovate to lanceolate, (3-)7-18(-30) × (2-)3-8(-15) mm, base broadly cuneate, margin entire, apex acute or obtuse, with a small ± curved mucro. Inflorescence corymbose, 2-7-flowered, nutant; peduncle 1-5 cm; bracts linear-lanceolate, 5-12 × ca. 1 mm, irregularly lacerate. Pedicel 8-14 mm, often with rudimentary bracteoles at base. Sepals lanceolate, 5-6 × ca. 1 mm, margin lacerate, apex long acuminate. Corolla pale yellow to orange-yellow (apices of outer petals deeper yellow to greenish orange), narrowly cordate-oblong in profile, 11-15 × 4-6 mm; outer petals saccate at base; sinus between pouches (i.e., where pedicel is inserted) 1-2 mm deep; apices of outer petals only slightly diverging, bullate, mucronate; inner petals with rather broad dorsal crests in apical 1/3, crest attenuate and prolonged beyond apex proper ca. 1.5 mm; nectary 2-3 mm, curved, shortly acute. Stigma squarish, 2 apical corners with small stigmatic papillae, basal papillae conspicuous. Capsule green and rubescent, mauve when ripe, linear-oblong, moniliform, 4-7 cm × 2-3 mm, 10-20-seeded. Seeds black, shiny, rounded-reniform in outline, with slightly raised radially much elongated testa cells, 1.5-2 mm, with prominent pure white elaiosome (in other species more whitish translucent). Self-compatible. Fl. Jul-Oct, fr. Aug-Jan. 2n = 16.
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