Scrambling or erect shrub or small tree 1–5(9) m tall, often deciduous, the branches usually slender; bark grey-black; branchlets grey to purple-brown, with or without lenticels, glabrous or pubescent, or setulose on young parts.Leaves 1.8–11 × 0.7–5 cm, oblong-elliptic to ovate or lanceolate, acuminate at the apex with the tip ± rounded, broadly cuneate to rounded at the base, glabrous save for barbellate domatia, or sparsely to fairly densely appressed pilose or setulose, particularly on the midrib, usually distinctly thin; petiole 2–7 mm long; stipules ± connate at the base, 1.5–3 mm long, with triangular-truncate bases, scarious but sometimes becoming woody, ± villous inside, with a subulate appendage 2–8 mm long or rarely lacking.Cymes umbel-like, 2–8-flowered, often produced together with young leaves; peduncle 0.5–4 mm long, or ± obsolete; pedicels 2–10(15) mm long; bracteoles 1–2 mm long, connate to form a scarious involucre.Calyx tube 1–1.5 mm long, the limb 0.3 mm long, truncate or obscurely toothed, scarious.Corolla rounded to sub-apiculate at the apex in bud; creamy, yellow or greenish-white; tube 2.5–4 mm long, with a ring of deflexed hairs within; lobes 1.8–3 mm long, triangular or oblong, subapiculate.Style 4–4.5 mm long.Stigma described as yellow below, green in middle and blue on top, coroniform, 5-lobed.Ovary (4)5–locular.Fruit black, 6–9 mm in diameter, subglobose, with (2)4–5 pyrenes; pedicels 7–12 (15) mm long.Pyrenes usually pitted.