Shrubs, rarely trees, 1-5 m tall, sometimes up to 8 m; stems many, long, slender, wand-like in upper portion, subquadrate, tomentulose (white or rusty) lateral branches more or less straight, suberect, slender, tomentulose. Leaves sessile or subsessile, dark green above, rusty or white tomentulose beneath, ovate-lanceolate or linear-lanceolate acuminate, 3-14-5 cm long, 0-7-4-2 cm broad, long and narrowly acuminate to an acute apex, base deeply cordate to auriculate, upper surface glabrescent, finely and distinctly rugose, lower surface reticulate, midrib and nerves prominent, tomenÂtulose, tomentum short, with some sparsely scattered stellate hairs in it, margin rather thick, finely and regularly crenate and often reflexed. Stipules interpetiolar, leaflike but short and broadly rounded at the apex, auriculate. Cymes in large terminal pyramidal bunches, peduncles and bracts stellate tomentose, ultimate 3-flowered cymes more or less sessile forming a several flowered head. Calyx tomentose without, more or less enclosed at the base by 1 or 2 pairs of opposite, oblong-ovate, tomentose bracts which are joined at the base and are about as long as the calyx; calyx-tube about 1-5-2 mm long, glabrous within; lobes erect about 0-5-1 mm long, broadly ovate, deltoid. Corolla varying in colour even in plants in the same locality, cream, lilac, lavender blue, purple or white with a deep orange throat, stellate tomentose without; tube about 5-8 mm long, hirsute within; lobes more or less oblong, 1-5-3 mm long, suberect at first with at least 2 becoming strongly reflexed, all fairly thinly bearded at the base. Stamens inserted on the corolla tube just above the middle; free portion of filaments short, 1 ? 5 mm long; anthers included, about 1 • 5 mm long. Ovary stellate tomentose; style about 4 mm long, glabrescent, stigma clavate. Capsule obovoid. about 4 • 5 mm long, exserted by about half from the persistent calyx, tomentose, the tomentum becoming short as the capsule matures, valves split for about 1/3 of the length, subacute. Fig. 22: 1.
