Cyanea hamatiflora ssp. hamatiflora, a member of the Campanulaceae (bellflower) family, is a palm-like tree 3 to 8 m (10 to 26 ft) tall. The leaves are elliptical with the broadest point at the tip, or oblong, 50 to 80 cm (20 to 30 in) long, 8 to 14 cm (3 to 5.5 in) wide, and stemless. The upper surface of the leaf is sparsely hairy to hairless and the lower surface is hairy at least along the midrib and veins. The leaf margins are minutely round-toothed. The inflorescence is 5- to 10-flowered with main stalks 15 to 30 mm (0.6 to 1.2 in) long. The stalks of individual flowers are 5 to 12 mm (0.2 to 0.5 in) long. The corolla is magenta in color, 60 to 80 mm (2 to 3 in) long, 6 to 11 mm (0.2 to 0.4 in) wide, and hairless. The tube of the corolla is slightly curved, with lobes 0.25 to 0.5 times as long as the tube. The corolla lobes all curve downward, making the flower appear one-lipped. The fruit is a purplish red berry 30 to 45 mm (1.2 to 1.8 in) long and 20 to 27 mm (0.8 to 1.1 in) wide. The berry is crowned by persistent calyx lobes.