Description

Key Characters:

Growth Form: Shrubs 0.7–1.5(–2) m tall.

Stems: Stems fleshy, terete (cylindrical) to weakly angled, becoming flattened when dry, short–hispidulous, new branches arising from uppermost axils below inflorescence.

Roots:

Leaves: Leaves simple. Opposite, crowded at branch ends. Blades obovate to broadly elliptic or rarely oblanceolate, (12–)15–30 cm long, 4–14 cm wide. Apex abruptly acuminate to somewhat cuspidate. Base broadly to narrowly cuneate. Upper surfaces glabrous; lower surfaces moderately or sometimes sparsely short–hispidulous, the hairs strongly curved, leaves dark green on upper surface; lower surfaces pale green, thick. Margins flat, entire or rarely toothed. Petioles 1–5 cm long. Stipules interpetiolar, may also be intrapetiolar, membranous, connate into a cup 3–7 mm long, margins ± ciliate, deciduous.

Flowers: Flowers 8–80 or more in terminal, compound paniculate cymes, densely puberulent throughout, the hairs appressed to spreading, peduncles erect, 0–10 mm long, the branches reflexed, 10–40 mm long, pedicels 5–17 mm long, bracts and bracteoles filiform, 3–6 mm long. Flowers bisexual (perfect) or functionally unisexual, actinomorphic. Calyx 5-merous, sepals united at base, lobes imbricate in bud, pale green, slightly unequal, thick, linear–lanceolate, 6–11 mm long, 1–1.5 mm wide, veins obscure, puberulent, inner surface of calyx often with colleters at the base, margin mostly fimbriate. Corolla 5-merous, pale greenish yellow or pale yellow, 20–35 mm long, the tube narrowly urceolate, 15–22 mm long, glabrous externally, sparsely white hirtellous within, the lobes linear-lanceolate, 8–13 mm long, spreading or reflexed, apex attenuate-acute. Stamens 5, alternipetalous, attached to mouth of corolla, exserted, usually recurved after anthesis, glabrous or hairy; filaments mostly short; anthers dithecal, introrse, connective often extended to form an apical appendage, opening by longitudinal slits. Ovary superior or partly inferior, carpels hairy or glabrous; 2– or 3-locular, sometimes partitions imperfect in upper part of ovary, densely pubescent in upper ½ becoming glabrate in fruit; ovules amphitropous, placentation axile; style terminal, mostly short; stigma clavate, ellipsoid, to globular, sometimes ± oblong, about as large as ovary.

Fruit: Capsules lanceoloid–ellipsoid; 32–35 mm long; 2–valved; valves rounded and obscurely keeled; apex with a beak 5–7 mm long; septicidal to sub–septifragal; maturing to green; with or without a black–purple tinge; usually becoming brown–black when over–mature. Seeds pale brown; 2.5–3.5 mm long; ± winged at both ends or all around; embedded in juicy orange to red pulp; numerous; ellipsoid to subglobular; intruded on the hilar side; surface mostly minutely papillose to areolate; brown to black; endosperm thick; fleshy; oily; proteinaceous; wilh saccharose or hemicellulose; embryo small; straight.

Ploidy:

Habitat: Rare in mesic valleys and forest; primarily Ko'olau Mountains; but also collected in Makaha Valley and Hale'au'au Gulch; Wai'anae Mountains; O'ahu.

Elevation Range: 300–520 m.