Acridocarpus zanzibaricus A. Juss.

A very attractive weak-stemmed shrub, up to 3 m. in height, rarely trailing or climbing. Very young shoots yellowish-sericeous, soon glabrescent, older ones usually densely lenticellate. Leaf-lamina oblong or obovate-oblong, (5-)6.5-11(-15) x (2-)3-4.5(-5.5) cm., often conduphcate, shortly acuminate, cuneate or rarely rounded at base, coriaceous, usually quite glabrous, with 8-12 pairs of lateral nerves, usually with 1 or 2 pairs of glands beneath near insertion of petiole; petiole robust, 0.6-1 cm. long, canaliculate, glabrous or somewhat pubescent. Inflorescences large terminal pyramidal many-flowered racemes, 8-20(-30) cm. long; axis stiff, brownish or yellowish sericeous when young, usually soon glabrescent; bracts subulate, up to 2 mm. long, persistent; bracteoles up to 1 mm. long, eglandular. Flowers 2-3 cm. in diameter. Calyx with usually 2-3 circular glands; lobes ovate, 3.5-4.5 mm. long, finely sericeous or pubescent outside, soon glabrescent. Petals bright yellow, obovate-subcircular, 1-1.25 cm. long, shortly clawed, lacerate at the margins. Stamens with linear-lanceolate or lanceolate anthers 4-6 mm. long; filaments rather thick, 1.5-2 mm. long, glabrous. Ovary ferrugineously sericeous; styles 2, up to 1.25 mm. long. Wing of samara obliquely semi-obovate (see fig. 1/8), 3-4.5 x 1.6-2.25 cm., with upper margin slightly curved or rarely straight, broadest at middle or somewhat above, obtuse or subobtuse at apex, not clasping the nutlet. Fig. 1/8, p. 4.