Tree to 20 m, flowering when only a few m tall; bole to 15 cm diam. Bark rugulose; inner bark bright orange; wood straw. Leafy twigs c. 5 mm diam.; apical buds stiletto-like, puberulent. Leaves 20–30 cm long, glabrous, 2-or 3-jugate with apical pair of leaflets and spike to 8 mm or its scar between them; petiole c. 4–7 cm, swollen at base. Leaflets 8–18 by 3–7 cm, oblong to narrowly elliptic or ovate, chartaceous to subcoriaceous, surface minutely verruculose in sicco, paler abaxially in sicco, alternate to subopposite, bases acute, attenuate, apices cuspidate-acuminate with acumen to 2 cm, midrib prominent on both sides, costae 7–9 on each side, some at least opposite, arcuate, prominulous abaxially, obscurely looped at extreme margin, domatia in axils of most, secondary venation obscure; petiolule 5–8 mm, rather swollen, especially apical ones, drying blackish. Thyrses spiciform, to 5 cm long, in axils of leaves or cicatrices; axis c. 2–3 mm diam., puberulous, bearing congested cymules of subsessile flowers (n.v.). Calyx cupular, puberulous without, yellowish, margin 4-lobed. Petals 4, 6 by 2.5 mm, ± puberulous without, cream. Staminal tube glabrous, truncate; anthers 8, 1 mm long. Disk c. 1 mm tall. Ovary puberulous; style ± puberulous; stylehead orbicular. Capsule solitary, 3.5 cm long and in diam., pyriform, deeply 3-or 4-lobed, glabrous, veined, bright red when mature, drying black. Seeds 3 or 4, 2 cm long, 1.5 cm diam., flattened ellipsoid, green; hilum c. 1 cm long; cotyledons oblique.
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