Vigorous medium-sized monoecious unarmed trees with pinnately veined large leaves that are variously indented and pinnatisect or even pinnate, inflorescence interfoliar, trunk roughly rnged: spadix 1 m. long more or less, inclosed in a papery closed woven bag that tears open irregularly lengthwise to free the densely flowered rachillae; staminate flowers occupying upper part of rachilla somewhat sunken in it and attended by subulate bracts, stamens many (commonly 27) with linear erect anthers; pistillate flowers mostly near base of rachilla, somewhat im-mersed, 3-loculed and 3-ovuled, one or more of the ovules developing, staminodia perhaps a dozen: fruit an echinate or tubercled hard large cortex, a nearly globular ball when one ovule develops but often 2-to 3-lobed; seed globular, reticulated with rapheal branches, embryo basal, albumen plane.
Home