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Leaf blades 7–25(28) × 7–28(30) cm, 5(7)-lobed, truncate or wide-cordate at the base, membranaceous, glabrous on upper surface, sparingly pilose to subglabrous along the main nerves beneath, yellow-green; leaf lobes up to 13 × 8.5 cm, usually broadly oblong-obovate, rounded to obtuse or sometimes shortly acuminate at the apex, entire; nerves (5)7(9) from the base, lateral nerves in up to 15 pairs per lobe.
Female flowers: pedicels c. 2 mm long, stout; calyx tube very short, calyx lobes unequal, 1.5 × 0.75 mm or c. 2 × 2 mm, broadly ovate or ovate-oblong, obtuse, entire, eglandular; petals 7–8 × 2.5–3 mm, free, elliptic-oblong, obtuse, glabrous, yellowish-green; disk c. 2.5 mm in diameter, shallowly 5-lobed; staminodes not seen; ovary c. 2 × 2 mm, 3-lobed to subglobose, smooth, glabrous; styles not seen.
Seeds 11.5 × 6 × 5 mm, including the caruncle, ellipsoid-subcylindric, shiny, evenly or mottled purplish-brown; caruncle 2.5 × 3.5 mm, ± hemispherical, 2-lobed, the lobes shortly fimbriate, golden-brown when dry, sometimes with a white fringe.
An erect perennial herb up to 1 m high, arising from a massive reddish rootstock c. 30 cm long which emits a red juice from the outer layers when cut or damaged.
Inflorescences up to 25 cm long, terminal or subterminal, subcorymbiform, peduncle up to 12 cm long; bracts up to 6 × 3 mm, triangular, acute, entire.
Stems, petioles and inflorescences glabrous or rarely sparingly puberulous, emitting a milky-watery latex when cut.
Fruits c. 1.2–1.3 × 1.1–1.2 cm, obovoid-subglobose, slightly 3-lobed, shallowly tuberculate-rugulose, pale green.
Stipules absent or very fugacious.
Petioles up to 28 cm long.
