Trees evergreen, to 35 m tall; trunk to 2.8 m d.b.h., with large buttresses. Branchlets cylindric, together with petioles glabrous, minutely brownish hirsute when young, or rarely densely brownish long stiff hirsute. Leaves opposite; petiole 0.5-1.5 cm, stout, with 2 stalked glands at apex; leaf blade oblong-elliptic or oblong-lanceolate, 10-25(-30) × 4-10(-15) cm, 2-4 × as long as wide, thickly papery, sparsely brownish hirsute abaxially and on veins adaxially when young, glabrescent or later glabrous, or rarely appressed yellowish brown sericeous when young, later sparsely (except on veins) hairy abaxially and subglabrous adaxially, base obtuse, margin entire or slightly undulate, rarely conspicuously toothed, apex with short, oblique tip; midvein yellow adaxially; lateral veins in 15-35 pairs. Inflorescences terminal or axillary, simple or compound, long, slender spikes, many grouped at branchlet apex and forming a large panicle 18-30(-50) cm; axes densely yellow tomentose. Calyx tube distally cupular, 2.5-3 mm, abaxially tomentose on ovary, glabrous on cupular part, adaxially tomentose; lobes 5. Stamens 10, exserted, 2-3 mm. Fruit not stipitate, yellowish when dry, 2-winged, 0.3-0.6 × 0.8-1.2 cm (broader than long); wings opposite, oblong, equal, membranous, sparsely pubescent, glabrescent, sometimes with 1 rudimentary wing seated between them. Fl. Aug-Sep, fr. Oct-Jan.

This species was listed as vulnerable in China by Liu (in Fu & Jin, China Pl. Red Data Book 1: 226-227. 1992).

Forests, streamsides in mountain valleys, one of the upper-layer canopy trees in primary forests; 600-2100(-2500) m. Guangdong (probably planted), SW Guangxi, SE Xizang, Yunnan [Bangladesh, Bhutan, NE India, Indonesia (N Sumatra), Laos, Malaysia, N Myanmar, Nepal, Thailand, N Vietnam].