Shrub or small tree, often gnarled, 1-5 m high; bark dark, finely fissured. Branchlets red, ±glabrous. Leaves flat, narrowly to broadly obovate, 5-10 cm long, 8-20 (-25) mm wide, initially densely appressed shining-white-pubescent, very quickly glabrescent; apex rounded, blackened, sometimes very shortly mucronate. Peduncle simple, sometimes more than 1 per axil, 6.5-25 mm long, subglabrous; rachis 2-10 mm long, white-pubescent. Flowers up to 40 per inflorescence, greenish white to cream-white; pedicels 5.5-7.5 mm long, ±glabrous except at junction with perianth. Perianth 3.5-4 mm long, white-pubescent, quickly glabrescent on claw, persistently hairy on limb. Pistil 8.5-12 mm long; style recurved or ±straight; pollen presenter oblique to lateral. Fruit obliquely ovate or elliptic, 2-3 cm long, 1-1.2 cm wide, gradually attenuate into recurved apiculum c. 2-3 mm long. Seed c. 20 mm long, 7 mm wide, occupying whole valve.