Erect, straggly, sparingly clonal shrub to 1.5 m, grey-green or yellowish-green, densely pubescent with stellate hairs; prickles to 10 mm long, abundant on stems and petioles, on pedicels and calyx of bisexual flowers, less common to absent elsewhere. Leaves ovate to ovate-lanceolate; lamina mostly 6–8 cm long, 3–4 cm wide, concolorous, entire to slightly undulate; petiole 5–15 mm long. Juvenile leaves up to 21 cm long, 11 cm wide. Inflorescence of one bisexual flower below cyme of up to 25 male flowers; peduncle c. 10 mm long; rachis to 10 (sometimes 20) cm long. Bisexual flower: pedicels 10–15 mm long, lengthened in fruit; calyx usually 9–14 mm long, the lobes lanceolate, 5–8 mm long; corolla broadly stellate, 35–40 mm diam., purple; anthers 7–8 mm long. Male flowers: pedicels 5–10 mm long; calyx 7–9 mm long; corolla to 40 mm diam.; anthers 6–7 mm long. Berry globular, 25–35 mm diam., pale yellow; fruiting pedicel 20–35 mm long. Seeds 2.5–3 mm long, black.
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