The inflorescences are pseudo-axillary and paniculate, the last divisions cimosas, mostly somewhat pubescent, the flowers are small, rarely more than 1 cm in diameter, and white or greenish tepals equal.

The fruit is an ovoid, fleshy drupe with a reddish-pink dome, green when immature and black when ripe.

[4] The family Lauraceae was part of the Gondwanaland flora, and many of its genera migrated to South America via Antarctica on ocean landbridges during the Paleocene era.

In Meso-America, the genus Nectandra proliferated into new species, and some of its berries constitute a valuable food supply for the quetzal bird that lives in the montane rainforests.

Usually, only the total percentage of water, sugar, nitrogen, crude fats and carbohydrates are reported by ornithologists.

Nectandra has also been investigated as a possible antitumoral agent, and the presence of neolignans suggests its potential use as a source of chemotherapeutics.

Some authors have postulated that tannins play important roles as antioxidant compounds in scavenging free radicals.

In sites of the Sican culture, collections of the seeds have been associated with human sacrifice, and used to incapacitate victims prior to being killed.