Small tree or shrub 1.5–8 m. tall, with grey-brown or black, finely striate bark; young branchlets densely velvety with greyish, ferruginous or brownish hairs, at length glabrescent, ridged, lenticellate. Leaf-blades obovate-elliptic, obovate-oblong, elliptic-lanceolate or oblong, (1.1–)4–16.5(–18) cm. long, (0.6–)2–6 cm. wide, mostly very distinctly acuminate at the apex, rarely obtuse or acute, subcordate at the base, not markedly coriaceous, glabrous and sometimes almost shining above, densely hairy beneath when very young, but soon pubescent or glabrescent; midrib and lateral nerves ± impressed above, prominent beneath; petiole 2–7 mm. long. Flowers with an almost unpleasant scent; pedicels 3–8 mm. long; bracteoles ovate-lanceolate, 2.5–4 mm. long, 1–1.5 mm. wide, hairy. Sepals triangular orovate, 0.6–1.2 cm. long, 4–7 mm. wide, acute or acuminate, densely ferruginous hairy, persistent. Petals green at first, then creamy-white for apical three-quarters or more, then narrowly deep crimson or purplish, and thickened at the base, this thickened area creamy-yellow, longitudinally striated and grooved, linear-oblong to linear-lanceolate or narrowly triangular, 2.5–6 cm. long, 0.7–1.5(–2) cm. wide, tapering to the acute apex, connate at the base for 0.4–1 (–1.5) cm., densely pilose outside at base where connate but rest only finely puberulous or pubescent. Stamens cream, 1.5–2.5 mm. long. Carpels green, 10–22, oblong, 2–2.5 mm. long, usually ± 10-ovuled, densely hairy. Monocarps several (probably 6 or so), 2–4 cm. long, 0.8–1 cm. wide, densely velvety with brown hairs. Seeds yellow or yellow-brown, 7–8 mm. long, 4–5 mm. wide and thick. Fig. 11, p. 49.
