Small shrub or long-scandent, attaining 6 m or more, scrambling over bushes and trees or sprawling on the ground, branches often drooping. Stem and branches angled, glabrescent, in the young parts and in the inflorescence thinly to rather densely furnished with fine, multicellular hairs. Leaves ovate to oblong-ovate or lanceolate-oblong, cuneate to subtruncate at the base, acute or acuminate at the apex, very finely pilose when young but soon glabrescent, lamina 3-15 x 2-7 cm.; petiole 1-3 (-6) cm. Inflorescence of slender axillary and terminal, commonly divaricately branched and panicled many-flowered racemes, the individual racemes up to c. 15 x 0.6-1 cm, the terminal panicle large and broad. Bracts narrowly deltoid-lanceolate, acute, 1-1.5 mm; bracteoles ovate, acute to rather obtuse, 0.5-1 mm. Flowers evenly scattered and solitary or subfasciculate, subsessile or more commonly on slender pedicels up to c. 3 mm long. Perianth segments spreading, finally reflexed, reddish-green to green or cream with narrow, pale margins and a darker central vitta, oblong-ovate, obtuse, 1.5-2.25 mm. Filaments slender, finally reflexed, c. 1.5 times as long as the perianth. Stigmas 3, flexuose or often spiral, much longer than the short style; ovary roundish. Berry globose, scarlet, 4-6 mm. Seeds lenticular, c. 1-1.25 mm, black, shining, reticulate with slightly convex areolae.

Type: Cultivated material from the Royal Gardens at Paris, in Herb. Lamarck (P, holotype) (IDC microfiche 547 No. 16!).

Habitat in Pakistan, hedges and scrub forests to c. 1520 m-elsewhere similarly in bushy open spaces in forests, along forest margins, in hedges etc; Distribution: Through India east to China (including Taiwan) and south through Malaysia and the Philippines to New Guinea and Australia.