Information

Glabrous or pubescent herb; rhizome up to 6 m. long bearing singly numerous leaves. Stem up to 2.5 m. long. Leaves with petiole up to 5 m. long but often less; calloused part 7–15 cm. long; blade ovate-elliptic, ± symmetric, normally 6 dm., occasionally up to 9 dm. long, acute or shortly acuminate, ± rounded at the base. Inflorescence arising 10–33 cm. below the calloused part of the petiole, up to 25 cm. long; internodes up to 20, 4–8 mm. long; bracts 17–23 mm. long, white; peduncle 6–10 mm. long; fleshy bracteole about 2.5 mm. long. Flowers white, tinged yellow or orange, when expanded about 2 cm. in diameter. Fruit depressed globose, about 2.5 cm. in diameter, smooth, bright scarlet, with white pulp inside, normally 3-seeded; seed as in Fig. 1/2A,p. 3, about 15 mm. long, chocolate-purple, bluish-violet or black, clothed in a deeply laciniate whitish aril. Fig. 1/2 and 2A,p. 3.