An evergreen shrub or subshrub 1–4.5(–8) m. tall.. Twigs pale yellowish-or brownish-grey, sparingly and not prominently lenticellate.. Young shoots and petioles slender, sparingly puberulous at first, later glabrescent, greenish.. Petioles 3–10 mm. long, strongly canaliculate above, with 1–2 small conical glands at the top; leaf-blades ovate, ovate-lanceolate or lanceolate, (2.5–)5–12 cm. long, 1–4(–5) cm. wide, obtusely acuminate, narrowly or broadly cuneate or rounded, distantly and often shallowly glandular crenate-dentate, firmly membranous, lateral nerves 3–4(–5) pairs, ascending and usually looped, not prominent above, scarcely so beneath, minutely verruculose above and glandular-papillose beneath, otherwise virtually glabrous, bright green above, paler beneath, never becoming purplish.. Stipules not aculeate and scarcely indurated, 1 mm. long, conical, not accrescent, brownish.. Male inflorescences interruptedly racemose, with the flowers in 3–5 dense clusters along the axis, 1.5–6.5 cm. long; peduncles (1–)2–4 cm. long, peduncle and axis slender, sparingly puberulous; bracts triangular-ovate, 0.5 mm. long, ciliate.. Male flowers: pedicels slender, straight, 1–2 mm. long, glabrous, articulate near the base; calyx in bud 4–5-angled, lobes 4–5, ovate, 1 mm. long, 0.7 mm. wide, acute, glabrous, pale green, translucent; extrastaminal disc-glands 10–12, minute, rounded, glabrous, green; interstaminal glands similar, several; stamens (4–)6–7(–9) with 4–5(–7) peripheral and 0–2 central, 0.3 mm. long, anthers yellowish.. Female inflorescences simply racemose, few-flowered, 1–3 cm. long; peduncle and axis slender, sparingly puberulous; bracts as in ♂.. Female flowers: pedicels thicker than in ♂, 2 mm. long, sparingly pubescent, articulate near the base; calyx-lobes 3, broadly triangular-ovate, 0.7 mm. long, 1 mm. wide, subacute or obtuse, subglabrous, ciliate, pale green; disc-glands 3, triangular-lanceolate, 0.5–0.7 mm. long, acute, glabrous; ovary trilobate, ± 1 mm. diameter, sparingly pubescent; styles free, ± 1 mm. long, spreading, stigmas fimbriate-laciniate throughout.. Fruit sometimes tricoccous, more often by abortion dicoccous or sometimes monococcous, the cocci 4–5 mm. diameter, glabrous, pale green or buff.. Seeds 3.5–4 mm. diameter, shallowly foveolate-muricate, aril vermilion.
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