Bush with fastigiate branching or small tree to 6 m; bole to 5 cm diam. Bark grey-brown, smooth to finely cracked; inner bark creamish, flecked white. Leafy twigs c. 4–5 mm diam., glabrescent to ± densely pilose. Apical buds with fist-shaped young leaves, densely brown pilose. Leaves 20–50 cm, imparipinnate, (l–)2–3(–4)-jugate, drying yellowish; petiole 6–10 cm, c. 2 mm diam., terete, glabrescent to ± densely pilose, base slightly swollen; rachis c. 2 mm diam., glabrescent to ± pilose. Leaflets all developing together, opposite, the terminal three the largest, to 25 by 8 cm, the more proximal smaller and even substipuloid in form, obovate-oblong to elliptic, glabrescent or finely sericeous on midrib adaxially, glabrescent to ± densely pilose abaxially, base weakly asymmetric in lateral ones, acute, symmetrical and attenuate in apical one, apex ± bluntly acuminate, costae c. 9–11 on each side, arcuate, not directly linked at margin; petiolule 0–2 mm (–12 mm on apical leaflet), ± pilose. Thyrses axillary or in axils of cicatrices of lately fallen leaves, 10–30 cm, ± squarrose, 0-or 1-branched, the proximal branches to 6 cm, passing imperceptibly distally into fascicles of sessile flowers; rachis c. 1.5 mm diam., ± pilose; bracts c. 2 mm long, narrowly triangular, ± densely adpressed pilose. Flowers white to cream, solitary or in fascicles of up to 7; bracteoles 2 or 3, 2–3 mm long, triangular to subsepaloid, densely pilose. Calyx cupular to salviform, c. 2–2.5 mm diam., sepals 5, imbricate, c. 2–2.5 mm long, united at base, ± densely pilose, ciliate at margin, the free lobes ovate or rounded. Petals 5, 16–19 by 2.5 mm, valvate, fleshy, adpressed pubescent to pilose without, glabrous within, adnate to staminal tube in proximal half. Staminal tube ± densely sericeous without, longvillous within, margin 10-lobed, each lobe irregularly bifid or toothed; anthers (9 or) 10, c. 1 mm long, narrowly oblong, ± locellate, glabrous, attached in notches between lobes, ± partially protruding from tube, subsessile. Disk c. 3 mm long, cylindrical, subglabrous or somewhat pubescent either or both within and without, irregulary c. 5-lobed or crenate. Ovary densely long-strigose, 5-locular, each locule 2-ovulate; style terete, long sericeous in lower 5/6; stylehead short-cylindrical. Fruit c. 2 cm long, subspherical to ellipsoid, usually ± beaked, especially when young, orange-red, densely pilose, cerebriform in sicco, 5-valved. Seeds up to 10, usually fewer, c. 13 mm long, plano-convex, red, borne on white carpel walls.