Scandent shrub or woody climber; young stems yellow-brown, tomentose, longitudinally canaliculate; older branches practically glabrous, with a few scattered prominent lenticels.. Leaf-blade oblong-elliptic to ± obovate, 7–18 cm. long, 4–9 cm. wide, apiculate to acute, rounded to subcordate at the base, subcoriaceous, with a repand to ± dentate margin, discolorous, practically glabrous, yellow-green to dark green, with the midrib and 5–8 pairs of secondary veins sparsely to densely grey-green to yellow-green pilose above and very prominent beneath; petiole 1.0–2.5 cm. long, deeply channelled and twisted, tomentose.. Flowers dioecious, axillary or supraxillary, appearing when leaves are mature.. Male flowers sessile, borne in solitary or fasciculate catkin-like spikes, densely compacted; rhachis up to 5 cm. long; peduncle almost non-existent, sometimes up to 3 mm. long, densely pilose; perianth parts united at base giving 4 oblong to linear lobes 2–4 mm. long, pubescent outside, glabrous inside; ovary rudimentary, pilose.. Female flowers fewer, sessile, in solitary or fasciculate globular spikes up to 8 mm. in diameter; peduncle up to 4 mm. long, tomentose; perianth oblong-elliptic, up to 3 mm. long, enlarging to 5 mm. in fruit, persistent, pubescent outside, glabrous within; ovary tomentose; stigma radiate, filamentous, persistent.. Fruit globose to ellipsoid, slightly attentuated at apex, 1–1.5 cm. long, 1–1.2 cm. across, pubescent.
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