Terrestrial and erect to 1 m tall or epiphytic shrub with branches pendent to 2 m long, sometimes scandent;  stem terete, reticulately striate, nitid, glabrate, the bark cracking in longitudinal strips;  twigs subterete, sometimes bluntly angled, striate, densely strigose-hispid with dark reddish-brown hairs, glabrate.  Leaves coriaceous, minutely wrinkled, ovate to elliptic-ovate, 3.8-7.5 x 1.7-5 mm, base rounded, sometimes with hint of being subcordate, apex abruptly and sharply short-acuminate, cuspidate and short-mucronate to long-acuminate, margin entire, thin, slightly revolute, glabrous on both surfaces although sometimes mature as well as newly emerging foliage ciliolate, sometimes minutely glandular-fimbriate beneath;  3-plinerved from the base, midrib slightly impressed above and slightly raised beneath, lateral nerves slightly raised on both surfaces, but essentially all nervation obscure;  petiole terete, sometimes flattened above, ca. 1 mm long, densely strigose-hispid as twigs, glabrate.  Inflorescence axillary, solitary, surrounded at the base by a few, striate, ovate, obtuse, ciliolate bractlets to ca. 0.8 mm long;  floral bract similar to bractlets but ca. 1.2 mm long and broad;  pedicel minute, ca. 0.5-0.8 mm long, short-pilose;  bracteoles broadly ovate, obtuse, ca. 1.5-3 mm long and broad, ciliolate, concealing calyx hypanthium to base of lobes at anthesis.  Flowers 4-merous, rarely corolla 5-merous, with calyx ca. 3.5 mm long;  hypanthium campanulate, terete or sometimes quadrangular, ca. 1.3-1.5 mm long;  limb erect-spreading, ca. 2-2.2 mm long;  lobes striate, triangular, bluntly acute, ca. 1.8-2 mm long;  sinuses acute;  corolla campanulate or sometimes urceolate-campanulate, ca. 3.6-5 mm long and 3-5 mm diam. at throat, glabrous, rarely scattered short-pilose (in 5-merous corolla), usually light greenish, yellowish-green to whitish-green, sometimes lightly suffused with pink, the lobes reflexed, triangular, bluntly acute, ca. 1.4 mm long;  stamens 8(-rarely 9), ca. 2-3 mm long, sometimes lightly adnate at base of corolla;  filaments ca. 0.6-0.8 mm long, glabrous;  anthers ca. 1.5-2.5 mm long;  thecae ca. 0.6-1 mm long;  tubules 2, distinct, sometimes slightly papillose, ca. 1-1.5 mm long, dehiscing by clefts ca. 0.5 mm long;  style inserted, about as long as corolla, glabrous;  nectariferous disc annular-pulvinate, glabrous.  Berry spherical, 5-6 mm diam., translucent white.

    Distribution.  Ecuador and Peru;  montane cloud forest, elfin forest, subpáramo at 1830-3500 m altitude.