Tragia descampsii De Wild.

An erect, simple-stemmed or sparingly branched dioecious villous urticating perennial herb up to 5.5 dm. with a woody rootstock.. Petiole 5–8 mm. long, densely villous; blade ovate, (3–)5–8 cm. long, (2.5–)3–5.5 cm. wide, acute, subacute or obtuse, widely and fairly shallowly cordate, crenate-serrate, firmly membranaceous, 7(–9)-nerved from the base, lateral nerves 4–5 pairs, densely villous above and beneath at first, later evenly to sparingly so, and with stinging hairs scattered along the midrib and main nerves, bright green.. Stipules lanceolate at the lower nodes, more narrowly lan-ceolate at the upper, 5–7 mm. long, 1–2 mm. wide, acute, abaxially villous-pubescent, adaxially glabrous.. Inflorescences terminal, on the main stem or lateral shoots.. Male inflorescences 5–7(–10) cm. long, interruptedly flowered, the flowers disposed in 3-flowered cymules along the axis; axis densely villous; bracts and bracteoles shorter than but otherwise resembling the stipules.. Female inflorescences 3–5 cm. long, densely flowered and subcapitate; axis and bracts ± as in the ♂ inflorescences.. Male flowers: pedicels 1 mm. long, evenly hirsute; calyx-lobes 3, ovate-lanceolate, 2 mm. long, 1 mm. wide, acute, evenly hirsute without, glabrous within, cream-coloured; stamens 1.5 mm. long, filaments slender, anthers 0.8 mm. long; pistillode minute, trilobate.. Female flowers: pedicels 1.5 mm. long, densely villous; calyx-lobes 6, elliptic-lanceolate in outline, 3 mm. long, extending to 2 cm. long in fruit, the rhachis narrowly lanceolate, pinnately lobulate, with 10–12 linear lobules on each side, acute, the rhachis and lobules densely beset with whitish or stramineous urticating bristles; ovary trilobate, 2–3 mm. diameter, densely setose; styles 3, 6–7 mm. long, united for ± one-third their length, pubescent without, the stigmatic surfaces ± smooth.. Fruits strongly trilobate, 4.5 mm. long, 8 mm. diameter, verrucose, evenly to densely setose.. Mature seeds not known.