The tree is buttress-forming, evergreen, and shade tolerant. The bark is smooth with shallow fissures. The leaves are large, 1-2 ft long, leathery, shining, and coarsely toothed at the margins. Its flowers are white, large, showy, and also very large, up to 1 ft wide, with showy reddish pistils and stamens. The edible fruits are rounded, 2-3" in diameter, with large fleshy sepals tightly enclosing the true fruit.
Flowers last only one day, but the plant stays in bloom all summer through fall, with multiple flowers and buds that keep opening every day.
The tree is harvested for its timber and the edible fruits are said to have medicinal value.
The plant is perfect for container and indoor culture, with showy tropical leaves, beautiful flowers, shade tolerance, and compact growth.