Herbaceous climber, 1-3 m long, hairy, hairs short or long. Probract not obvious or leaf-like, often obliquely curved and ± clasping the stem, up to 15 mm long. Leaves: petiole (1-)2-4 cm long; blade membranous, in outline (broadly) ovate or subcircular, (3-)5-angular or up to halfway lobed, 2.5-10 by 2-9 cm, densely or sparsely fine hairy or long-pilose on both surfaces, often scabrous above with minute cystoliths, margin denticulate. Male inflorescences: peduncle 3-10 cm long, at apex with a 5-20(-40)-flowered subumbel or flowers in a dense 1-2 cm long raceme. Male flowers: pedicel (5-)8-15 mm long, finely hairy; receptacle-tube c. 2 by 2.5 mm, finely gland-hairy, throat inside with hairs c. 0.3 mm long; sepals linear, 0.4-0.6 mm long; petals elliptic (ob)ovate, 2-2.5 by 1.5-2 mm, densely 0.1 mm long gland-hairy on both surfaces; filaments c. 0.2 mm long, anthers connivent into a synandrium c. 1.5 mm diam., connective broad, with truncate apical c. 0.5 mm long extension, hairy at apex, thecae strongly curved, hook-like; disc consisting of three carnose ± flat lobes, each c. 1 mm high, at base connate and adnate with the base of the receptacle tube. Female flowers solitary, pedicel 10-30 mm long; perianth as in male; ovary 4-7 by 3-4 mm, at apex with a 2-2.5 mm long neck, smooth or mostly with scattered or dense sometimes ± upward curved protuberances to 1 mm long, all densely finely minutely hairy; style c. 1 mm long, stigma 1.5-2 mm long, irregularly 2-lobed, each lobe unequally 2-or 3-lobed again, lobes slender, finely papillose; staminodes minute, inserted at c. 1/4 from the base in the receptacle-tube, linear, truncate. Fruits ripening green, 1.5-2.5 by 1.5-2 cm, at apex tapering into a beak to 0.5 cm long with at apex the withered perianth persisting, tubercles or protuberances to 1 cm long; fruiting pedicel rather stout, straight, 1.5-3 cm long. Seeds narrowly ovate, c. 8 by 3 mm, base ± narrowed, apex subtruncate, faces shallowly finely scrobiculate or smooth, margin faint, with square edge.
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Stems to 2 m long, pubescent. Probract stem-clasping, 1–2 cm wide. Leaves ovate, cordate at base; lamina 25–70 mm long, 30–75 mm wide, sinuate-dentate to shallowly 3–5-lobed, acuminate, mucronate; petiole 14–40 mm long. Male flowers in 12–40-flowered umbellate racemes; peduncle 3–12 mm long; pedicels 10–16 mm long; hypanthium 0.5–0.7 mm long; calyx-lobes subulate, 0.2 mm long; corolla-lobes ovate, 0.5–0.7 mm long. Female flowers on pedicels 20–45 mm long; ovary 3–3.5 mm diam., setose; fruit 17–25 mm long, 15–20 mm diam., muricate with soft bristles, dehiscing through ruptured attachment of pedicel; pedicel 2–5 cm long. Seeds numerous, 8–10 mm long, attenuate, finely pitted, pale buff; margin slightly thickened.
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