Trees, evergreen, up to 20 m tall; branchlets with distinct nodes, glabrous. Leaves long petiolate; stipule solitary, narrowly ovate, enclosing apical bud, caducous, leaving annular scar at each node; leaf blade tricuspidate or simple, broadly ovate-rounded, leathery, base cordate, margin entire, venation actinodromous. Inflorescence densely spicate, terminal or leaf-opposed, pedunculate, many-flowered. Flowers bisexual, adjacent flowers united at base. Floral cup adnate to ovary. Sepals usually 5, imbricate, ovate-rounded, unequal. Petals usually 5, white, linear-liguliform, subfleshy, straight in bud. Stamens 10–13 (but see comment below), filaments short, stout; anther thecae 2-sporangiate, each dehiscing by 2 valves, connective protrusion massive, stamens and staminodes fused with petals into a tube. Ovary semi-inferior; ovules 6 per locule; styles very short. Capsules ovoid-globose, dehiscing above middle by two 2-lobed valves; exocarp subfleshy, endocarp woody. Seeds more than 1 per carpel, ellipsoid; seed coat thick and hard; endosperm fleshy; embryo situated in middle. 2n = 26.
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