It is native to Cameroon, the Central African Republic, Ghana, Guinea, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Nigeria and Sierra Leone.

[3] Palisot de Beauvois the botanist and entomologist who first formally described the species using the basionym Xylopia undulata, named it after the wavy (undulātus, in Latin) margins of its petals.

The sepals are green and smooth on both sides with wavy margins and are arched backwards when mature.

The outer petals are white with yellow and purple highlights, 3–4.5 by 1.5–3.0 centimeters, and have very wavy margins.

The inner petals have a 2.-5 millimeter wide claw at their base and a 2–2.7 by 1.5–2 centimeter blade.

[5] It has been observed growing in swampy terrain and along rivers, in rain forests, at elevations from 0–700 meters.