An annual or perennial, monoecious, unbranched or scarcely branched, sparingly pubescent weakly urticating herb, erect at first, later twining, up to 80 cm. when supported.. Petioles of the lower leaves up to 11 cm. long, those of the other leaves progressively shorter upwards; blade ovate, ovate-lanceolate or lanceolate-oblong in outline, hastate or sometimes irregularly shortly 1–6-lobed, 2–10 cm. long, 0.7–5 cm. wide, acute, acutely or obtusely acuminate, truncate or shallowly widely cordate, irregularly dentate to subentire, membranaceous, 3–5-nerved from the base, lateral nerves 3–6 pairs, not prominent above and scarcely so beneath, sparingly setose above, evenly setose along the midrib and main nerves beneath, dark green.. Stipules lanceolate, 2 mm. long, acute, sparingly pubescent.. Inflorescences leaf-opposed, often borne on short lateral shoots, slender, 1–3 cm. long, the peduncles 0.5–1.5 cm. long, mostly ♂ with a single basal ♀ flower; axis sparingly pubescent; ♂ bracts linear or linear-lanceolate, 1.5 mm. long, acute, subglabrous, 1-flowered; bracteoles subulate, 0.5 mm. long; ♀ bracts lanceolate, and the bracteoles linear, otherwise as in ♂.. Male flowers: pedicels 1 mm. long, pubescent, articulate in the middle; buds subglobose, depressed at the apex; calyx-lobes elliptic-ovate, 0.8 mm. long, cucullate, subglabrous, green; stamens minute, filaments very short, anthers 0.5 mm. across; pistillode triangular, flat.. Female flowers: pedicels 0.5–1 mm. long, thicker than in ♂, puberulous; calyx-lobes 6, 1 mm. long, extending to 3 mm. long in fruit, ovate-lanceolate in outline, pinnately lobulate, with (2–)3(–4) lobules on each side, the terminal lobe somewhat larger than the lateral ones but otherwise similar to them, rhachis puberulous without, pubescent at first within, later glabrescent, the rhachis straw-coloured, the lobules green; ovary trilobate, 1 mm. diameter, densely setose; styles 3, 1.5 mm. long, united for half their length, glabrous or subglabrous, the stigmas recurved, smooth.. Fruits trilobate, 3.5 mm. long, 5.5 mm. diameter, smooth, evenly puberulous, sparingly pubescent and setose, green.. Seeds 2.5 mm. diameter, reddish brown, marbled pale grey and whitish, the grey blotches sparingly and the whitish blotches densely papillose.. Fig. 58.
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Female flowers: pedicels 0.5 mm long, extending to 1.5 mm in fruit; calyx lobes 6, 1 × 0.5 mm, accrescent to 2–3 × 1 mm, each lobe (5)7–9-lobulate, the lobules oblong-linear, shorter than the width of the calyx-lobe rhachis, sparingly shortly setose, green; the calyx-lobe rhachis linear-lanceolate, sparingly pubescent without, glabrous within, becoming hardened and whitish within; ovary 1 mm in diameter, 3-lobed, densely setose; styles 3, 1 mm long, connate for two-thirds of their length, glabrous, stigmas ± smooth, recurved.
Leaf blade 2–10 × 0.7–5 cm, ovate to ovate-lanceolate, sometimes indistinctly lobed, acutely acuminate at the apex, irregularly dentate to shallowly sinuate on the margins or subentire, cuneate to rounded or truncate to shallowly wide-cordate at the base, membranaceous, 3–5-nerved from the base, sparingly hirsute-pubescent on the upper surface, evenly pubescent and shortly setose especially along the midrib and main nerves beneath; lateral nerves in 3–6 pairs, not or scarcely prominent above or beneath.
Inflorescences 1–3 cm long, with the peduncle up to 1.5 cm long, leaf-opposed on short lateral shoots, delicate, bisexual, with a single female flower at the base; male bracts 1.5 mm long, linear, ciliate; male bracteoles 0.5 mm long, subulate; female bracts lanceolate, and bracteoles linear, otherwise ± as in the male.
Male flowers: pedicels 1 mm long, jointed; buds subglobose, apically depressed; calyx lobes 0.8 × 0.5 mm, elliptic-ovate, cucullate, subglabrous, green; stamens less than 0.5 mm long; pistillode triangular.
Seeds 2.5 mm in diameter, subglobose, greyish-buff, mottled reddish-brown, with scattered whitish papillose patches.
Fruit 3.5 × 5.5 mm, 3-lobed, smooth, evenly minutely puberulous, sparingly setose.
A climbing urticating perennial herb, monoecious; stems pubescent and puberulous.
Stipules 2 mm long, linear-lanceolate, acute.
Petiole 0.5–11 cm long, slender.
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