Trochomeria polymorpha Cogn.

Small erect herb; tuber rounded, obconic or fusiform, sometimes forked, 15–40 mm. in diameter; stems arising from tuber or from a short gnarled perennial underground stem arising therefrom, glabrous or shortly hairy, 5–70 cm. tall, sometimes leafless and then bearing only flowers.. Leaf-blade linear, lanceolate or elliptic, 20–100 mm. long, 1–15 mm. broad, somewhat scabrid above and beneath and on margins, occasionally divided from near base into 3 linear to elliptic lobes, when lobed 25–44 mm. across the breadth of the lobes, with the middle lobe longer than the laterals; margins entire or remotely toothed towards the apex of the leaf.. Tendrils usually absent, when present very inconspicuous.. Male flowers 3–11 in fascicles, sessile or on peduncles up to 22 mm. long, with 1–4 mm. long pedicels, rarely solitary and then with up to 35 mm. long pedicels; receptacle-tube cylindrical, slightly constricted at about the middle, pubescent, 7–18 mm. long; lobes triangular, up to 1.5 mm. long; petals triangular, ovate or lanceolate, reflexed, slightly narrowed just above the base, 2–15 mm. long, 1–2.5 mm. broad, green with sulphur-yellow papillae.. Female flowers on 3–5.5 mm. long pedicels; ovary ovoid, glabrous or finely pubescent, 4–8 mm. long, 2–4.5 mm. across; receptacle-tube cylindrical, slightly bulbous below, 8–13 mm. long; lobes up to 1 mm. long, reflexed; petals ovate-lanceolate, 3.5–8 mm. or more long, 1–1.5 mm. broad, reflexed.. Fruit a shortly stalked subglobose or ovoid berry, red, 15–21 mm. long, 11.5–18 mm. across.. Fig. 12/8–10, p. 86.