Herb or shrub up to 2 m high, the stem simple or few-branched, stellate-puberulus. Leaves with the petiole 0.5-5 cm long, minutely stellate-puberulus, the stipules subulate-ovate, acuminate; blade narrowly elliptic to elliptic, or narrowly obovate to obovate, cuneate to rounded (exceptionally subcordate) at the base, more or less acuminate at the apex, coarsely crenate-dentate or crenate-serrate at the margin, up to 20 cm long and 10 cm wide, 1-to 3-nerved at the base, sparsely and minutely stellate-puberulus on both sides, the venation slightly prominent beneath. Flowers mostly in small, dense, corymbiform or subcapitate infoirescences at the apex of the stem or branchlets, the bracts ovate-lanceolate, acuminate; pedicel ca 5 mm long; epicalyx of 5-6 bractlets, these united for less than 1/4 of their length, narrowly ovate, acuminate, 5.5-11 mm long and 1.5-3 mm wide, sparsely and minutely stellate-puberulus; calyx tubular, lobed to about the middle, 4-7 mm long, stellate-puberulus, the lobes ovate-triangular, acute, ciliolate at the margin; petals narrowly obovate-cuneate, asymmetrical, rounded at the apex, 10-13 mm long and ca 4 mm wide, white (exceptionally pink?); staminal tube ca 6-8 mm long, 5-lobulate at the apex, antheriferous near the apex, the filaments few and ca 1 mm long; style slightly longer than the staminal tube, the stigmas capitellate and minutely fimbrillate. Mericarps triquetrous, 5-7 mm long and ca 2.7 mm wide, rigid-chartaceous, the back convex, nearly smooth, glabrous and with 3 incon-spicuous, longitudinal ribs, 1 central and 2 marginal, the apex rounded and with 3 proximate, retrorsely hispidulous awns, the central up to 7.5 mm long, the lateral shorter; seeds trigonous, up to 5 mm long, glabrous.
Home