Medium-sized tree, often misshapen. Young parts shortly pale grey pubescent with minute adpressed hair tufts, caducous except on panicle, leaf bud and stipule. Twig 2-3 mm ø apically, terete, glabrous, smooth, pale brown; stipule scars 1.5-2 mm long at first, narrow, ascending, half encircling twigs. Bud 6-12 by 1.5-3 mm, acute, falcate. Stipule to 24 by 7 mm, narrowly hastate, acute, fugaceous. Leaves 12-18 by 5.5-7 cm, thinly coriaceous, narrowly ovate; base obtuse or broadly cuneate; acumen to 1.5 cm long, slender; nerves 6-7 pairs, curved, well spaced, slender, prominent beneath, at c. 40°-50°, with small axillary domatia; midrib applanate above, prominent beneath; tertiary nerves very slender, diagonal to nerves, densely scalariform; petiole 2-3 cm long. Panicle to 15 cm long, terminal or axillary, pendent, terete, rugose on drying; doubly branched at to 3 cm intervals, the branchlets bearing to 12 distichous flowers; bracteoles to 5 by 2.5 mm, elliptic, obtuse, densely shortly pale grey pubescent outside, sparsely pubescent within. Flower bud to 14 by 4.5 mm, large, fusiform, obtuse. Calyx glabrous but for the setose margin: lobes equal, broadly ovate, thickened, closely adpressed at the corolla. Petals rich yellow, narrowly lanceolate, acute, firmly connate at base, strongly contorted and twisted, imbricate, the basal half forming a broad cup when open, shortly pubescent on parts exposed in bud. Stamens 15, of 3 distinct lengths; filaments expanded at base, abruptly tapering and filiform distally; anthers large, reniform, cells indistinct; appendage to connective c. 3 x length of anther, the longest reaching half length of style. Ovary and stylopodium pyriform, shortly densely pubescent; style as long as ovary and stylopodium, filiform, glabrous. Fruit calyx glabrous; 3 longer lobes to 13 by 3 cm, broadly spatulate, obtuse, to 11 cm broad above the to 1.0 by 1.2 cm deeply saccate thickened base; 2 shorter lobes to 8 by 1.3 cm, subequal, similarly saccate. Nut to 2.5 by 1.3 cm, ovoid, shortly densely buff pubescent; stylopodium to 1 cm long, tapering.
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