Botany
Shrub or small tree is 3 to 5 meters high, more or less hairy or nearly smooth. Leaves are opposite, oblong-ovate to oblong-lanceolate, 6-14 cm long, pointed in both ends, dark green and glossy. Calyx lobes are expanded into large, leaflike. white or greenish white and oval bracts. Blade is expanded, green, with short acute or blunt tip. Flowers are small, tubelike, expanded into five, ovate lobes, yellowish orange in color.

Distribution
In thickets and secondary forests at low and medium altitudes, in almost all islands and provinces.

Parts used and preparation
Roots, leaves, sepals.

Uses
Folkloric
- Plant is used for dysentery and snake bites.
• Decoction of roots and leaves used for affections of the chest and lung.
• Root and the while, full-grown sepals are used in jaundice.
• Bark used for stomach ache.
• Externally, decoction of leaves used as emollient.
• For influenza, the tambalan healers of Samar use the scrappings of the bark of M. philippica and C. dichotoma. Mixed and pounded, the expressed juice strained and mixed with lemon extract; taken three times daily.

Availability
Wild-crafted 

Additional Sources and Suggested Readings
(1)
Medicinal Herbs of Samar catalogued / Yolando R. de Guzmanand Krismas Sapao; UPVTC /