Erect and bushy to overarching or scandent subshrub, to c. 3 m tall; stem and divergent branches thinly appressed-pilose or glabrescent, terete or bluntly tetragonous. Leaves narrowly to broadly oblong, elliptic or broadly ovate, 2.5–7 x 1.5–5 cm, acute or rather blunt, cuneate to truncate or subcordate into the 3–12 mm petiole, densely appressed-pilose when young but soon glabrescent, early deciduous. Inflorescences of a raceme of usually opposite sessile or shortly pedunculate, globose, increasingly distant congested cymes 1–1.25 cm in diam., in fruit enlarging to form a burr to 2.25 cm across, the spines not greatly accrescent or rigid and the burr rather soft; inflorescence axis and 2.5–7 mm peduncle ± white-pilose; arista of bracteoles not greatly lengthening, the outer spines of the burr remaining broad-based. Outer 2 tepals lanceolate, 4–6 mm, rather broadly hyaline-margined, (4–)5–7-nerved in the central green portion with the nerves shortening outwards, nerved portion ± densely long-pilose especially about the apex; inner 3 tepals somewhat shorter, 3–5-nerved. Modified flowers of 2 small bracteoliform processes and 2 small straight spines. Pseudostaminodes flabelliform, c. 1 mm, apically dentate. Style slender, 2–2.5 mm. Capsule ovoid, ± 3 mm, scarcely hardened at the apex.
