Putterlickia retrospinosa A.e.van Wyk & Mostert

Evergreen woody climber up to 5 m tall, spinescent, glabrous. Branches brown, becoming dark grey to blackish with numerous white verrucose lenticels. Spines slender or robust, perpendicular to stem or often pointing backward, up to 100 mm long, naked. Leaves alternate or fasciculate, petiolate, coriaceous, dark green and shiny above, paler green and dull below, glabrous; lamina broadly elliptic to broadly obovate, rarely elliptic or ovate, (25-)80-120(-150) x (15-)40-60(-70) mm, apex rounded or retuse, mucronate, base rounded to cuneate, margin subentire or with few teeth in distal half, thick, midrib slightly raised above, principal lateral veins raised or obscure above, slightly raised below; petiole 8-15 mm long. Stipules subulate, ± 2 mm long. Inflorescence a lax subdichasium, terminal or axillary. 80-140 mm long; peduncle 30-50 mm long; pedicels 3-5 mm long. Flowers 5-merous, many in each cyme, ± 5 mm in diameter. Sepals ± 1 mm long, green, fleshy, cucullate, subrotund, apex rounded, margin dilate. Petals 3.5 x 2.0 mm, white, erect or spreading, oblong, apex obtuse, margin irregularly toothed. Disc slightly concave, margin shallowly crenate. Stamens subterete, 1.5 mm long; anthers 0.5 mm long. Ovary 3-locular: ovules (6-)8-10 per locule; style very short; stigma 3-lobed, spreading. Capsules whitish green, turning pink or red, obconic-trigonous, smooth, glabrous, pendulous, 30 x 20 mm. Seeds 1-3 per locule, ellipsoid, dark reddish brown, 8 mm long, completely enveloped by a well developed, orange aril.