Vines, coarse, high climbing; stems pilose. Leaves with the lamina broadly elliptic to obovate orbicular, to ca. 20 cm long, 12 cm wide, the apex with an abrupt acumination, ca. 3 mm long, usually pubescent above, often rough with persistent hair bases, sparsely velutinous below, chartaceous, slightly cordate at the base, the lateral veins oblique, the primary lateral veins in 7-10 pairs; petioles sparsely pilose, the rachis to ca. 5 cm long, stipels 4-7 mm long; stipules lanceo-late, to 35 mm long, including region below insertion, densely pilose outside. Inflorescences stout to ca. 70 cm long, flowering on 1/2 the length, the tubercles sessile, the indument ferruginous; bracts linear lanceolate, ca. 20 mm long, finally caducous, spreading or somewhat reflexed, pilose; bracteoles flabellate to orbic-ular, 2-4 x 2-4 mm, ferruginous without, persistent; pedicels ca. 7 mm long. Flowers with the buds somewhat incurved, the flowers ca. 2.5 cm long, occa-sionally to ca. 3 cm long; calyx tube 12-15 mm long, carnose, ferruginous pu-bescent without, velutinous within, the upper calyx lobes partially fused, emar-ginate, ca. 7 mm long, 10 mm wide, the lateral lobes acute, ca. 7 mm long, the lower lobe lanceolate, ca. 10 mm long; lamina of the standard obovate orbicular, carnose, glabrous, bicallose, to ca. 25 mm long, the auricles semi-orbicular, re-flexed, the claw ca. 5 mm long, the wings broadly obliquely oblong, to ca. 25 mm long, the claw ca. 5 mm long, the keel triangulate, ca. 8 mm long, ca. 9 mm wide distally, auriculate, the claw ca. 5 mm long, the upper margin slightly undulate, culminating in a truncate beak; stamens 10, the vexillary anther and the inner alternate anthers of the staminal sheath imperfect, the perfect anthers ca. 0.5 mm long; ovary short stipitate, villous, 2-4(-5)-ovulate, the upper style glabrous, ca. 5 mm long, the lower part bulbous. Fruits oblong, frequently somewhat arcuate, ca. 18 x 6 x 3 cm, partially dehiscent, the fuscous pubescence usually persistent, the upper suture indehiscent, paralleled by the thick ribs, the lower margin trun-cate, frequently constricted between the seeds, the suture becoming sulcate, the exocarp with oblique fissures; seeds (1-)3-4(-5), sub-orbicular, ca. 3 x 3 x 2 cm, hard, reddish, the-hilum encircling nearly 2/3 the testa.
Can be grown by seedlings. Seeds needs soaking.
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