Stems shrubby, the branches terete and glab. Lvs rather close, c. 2.5 cm. long, linear-lanceolate, stiff, smooth, glab., entire, the apex plicate-mucronate. Racemes in upper axils, c. 3·5 cm. long, with short terete peduncles. Pedicels short, opp., each with a minute bract at base. Calyx-lobes oblong, obtuse, glab., subciliate under the lens. Corolla-lobes obtuse. Style > corolla. Capsules oval, 2 × calyx.

Gynodioecious shrub or small tree, up to c. 7.5 m tall. Branches erect; old stems pale grey; youngest branchlets progressing from olive- green to brown, or red-brown; internodes (1.5-)3-17(-20) mm long; leaf decurrencies obscure; leaf- base scars evident; stem pubescence bifarious (mostly), uniform or absent (rarely), eglandular puberulent (when hairy). Leaf bud about as long as mature leaves with leaves of a pair separating when mature; sinus absent. Leaves decussate, free at base, erecto-patent to recurved; lamina lanceolate or linear-lanceolate, folded or flat, (8-)25-60(-76) mm long, 1.5-7 mm wide; apex whitish, acute or shortly acuminate; base cuneate; evident venation in fresh leaves consisting of midrib only or consisting of midrib and 2 secondary laterals arising from base; midrib depressed to grooved above and thickened beneath; margin not thickened, usually translucent and yellowish green to orange-brown (the latter when dry), scabrous or minutely pubescent (with short, stiff, basally swollen, antrorse hairs), entire; adaxial surface light green, dull, usually with dense stomata, not pitted, hairy along midrib; abaxial surface pale green, dull, with dense stomata (more so than adaxial surface), not pitted (although frequently with many small glandular hairs) or sometimes faintly pitted with small depressions that each contain a twin-headed glandular hair. Inflorescences with (20-)40-80(-130) flowers, lateral, racemose and unbranched, (2-)4-10(- 12) cm long, longer than subtending leaves, flowers usually opening in acro-petal sequence, with all flowers (including those near the apex) usually developing to maturity; peduncle (0.35-)0.5--1.9 cm long, eglandular pubescent or pubescent with a mixture of eglandular and glandular hairs; rachis (1.6-)3-10.2 cm long, eglandular pubescent or pubescent with a mixture of eglandular and glandular hairs; bracts alternate, acute to obtuse, ciliolate with both glandular and eglandular hairs, ovate to deltoid or oblong; pedicels ranging in length from much longer than bracts to shorter than bracts, eglandular-pubescent or pubescent with both eglandular and glandular hairs or glabrous, erecto-patent to patent at anthesis, suberect to recurved at fruiting, (0.3-)0.5-3.5(4) mm long. Flowers protandrous, those on individual plants either hermaphrodite or female. Calyx terete, 1.5-2.3(-2.7) mm long, 4-lobed, equally divided; lobes all similar, ovate to elliptic (often broadly so), obtuse to acute (sometimes on one inflorescence), with mixed glandular and eglandular cilia, margins membranous. Corolla white with lobes tinged pink to mauve at anthesis, white after pollination; tube hairy inside, 2.1-3.8 mm long, 1.4-3(-3.8) mm wide, cylindric or slightly expanded in lower half, longer than calyx; lobes glabrous or with a few hairs toward base on inner surface, hairs (when present) multicellular; posterior lobe broadly ovate, obtuse or emarginate, patent to recurved, with margin and apex turned upwards; lateral lobes ovate, obtuse, suberect to patent, with margin and apex turned upwards; anterior lobe ovate, obtuse, suberect to patent, with corolla throat white. stamen filaments white, diverging after anthesis, incurved at apex in bud (Fig. 6), becoming straight after anthesis, 3-5 mm long; anthers obtuse (with a short, blunt apiculus), magenta, 1.5-2.2 mm long; sterile anthers of female flowers very pale lilac or light brown, c. 1 mm long (when dry). Nectarial disc glabrous. Ovary ovoid, glabrous, margin and apex turned upwards, not enfolding style; 0.8-1 mm long, 2-locular; ovules c. 8-12 per locule, marginal in one layer on a flattened placenta; style 3.5-6 mm long, 0.12-0.22 mm thick glabrous, pink (especially when young) or white; stigma subcapitate or capitate, yellow at anthesis, 0.17-0.22 mm wide. Capsules latiseptate, obtuse or subacute, dark brown, 2.5-3.5 mm long, 1.4-2.5 mm thick, glabrous, septicidal split extending to base, loculicidal split extending ¼-¾-way to base.

n = 40

2n = 80

2n = 80