|
Description: Dioecious climber to 15 m. Stems covered with
straight or curved prickles, rusty-tomentose or glabrous. Leaves:
stipules subulate, commonly divided, caducous; petiole and rachis to 75
cm long, with recurved prickles; pinnae 3–8 pairs; stipellae
prickle-like or absent; leaflets 6–14 per pinna, ovate-oblong to
orbicular, acute, obtuse or emarginate but with slender apiculum, 2–9 cm
long, 1.3–5 cm wide, acute to rounded at base, shining both surfaces,
glabrous or hairy, openly and shallowly reticulate. Inflorescence 10–50
cm long, supra-axillary or terminal, male or female or mixed; pedicels
6–12 mm long; bracts subulate, 7–9 mm long, tomentose. Flowers scented.
Sepals oblong, 9–12 mm long. Petals obovate, 12–15 mm long, yellow.
Stamens 8–12 mm long, very hairy in lower half; anthers 1.4–1.8 mm long.
Pistil c. 7 mm long, glabrous; ovules 4. Pod elliptic to rounded, 4–13
cm long, 3.5–6 cm wide, green, bristly, pubescent including bristles.
Seeds 2–4, subglobose, 1.5–2.5 cm diam., grey (in Australia), elsewhere
yellow to brown. |
