Shrubs or rarely small trees, erect, to 6 m tall. Young branches yellow tomentose, glabrescent; branchlets opposite or subopposite, spinescent. Leaves alternate or subopposite; petiole 4-6 mm, rarely longer, puberulent; leaf blade abaxially yellow-green, adaxially deep green, elliptic or obovate-elliptic, 2.5-4.5 × 1.4-2.5 cm, papery, both surfaces glabrous, lateral veins 2 or 3(or 4) pairs, major veins ± prominent abaxially, impressed adaxially, base cuneate or subrounded, margin serrulate, with hooklike recurved teeth, apex obtuse or rounded, rarely acute, slightly emarginate. Flowers sessile or subsessile, glabrous, solitary or 2-or 3-fascicled in lax spikes or spicate panicles, often inserted at ends of lateral branches or in axils of upper leaves; rachis glabrous. Sepals triangular, fleshy, apex acute. Petals spatulate, shorter than sepals, apex slightly emarginate. Stamens longer than petals; anthers globose. Ovary compressed-globose, immersed in disk, 3-loculed, with 1 ovule per locule; style short, thick; stigma large, 3-fid. Drupe black or black-purple when mature, obovoid-globose or globose, 5-8 mm in diam., with 3 pyrenes. Seeds compressed, emarginate at both ends. Fl. May-Sep, fr. Jul-Oct.
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