[2][3] The name heterophylla comes from the differing leaf shapes that can be seen in seedlings and juvenile plants of the species.

[9] It is more robust and has bigger flowers than its close relative, Parsonsia capsularis, which is also known as akakiore or small Māori jasmine.

[9] The fruit of P. heterophylla is a long, narrow pod that opens to release tufted seeds.

[4] The two-valved pod opens from the tip downwards, bending outwards and raising seeds up so that their tufts can be caught by the wind.

[15] The leaf types can narrowly be defined as small round, long narrow and moderately broad and oblong.

[15] P. heterophylla is an indigenous or endemic species of New Zealand, meaning that it is not found anywhere else in the world.

[14] For planting P. heterophylla in gardens, the optimal time to collect seeds is between February and April.

[18] P. heterophylla twine their young stems around other plants in order and grow and climb towards the sunlight.

[10] P. heterophylla is a host plant to a number of invertebrate species, including beetles, wasps, moths, butterflies, grasshoppers and sucking bugs.

[5] The flowers of P. heterophylla were historically often bound by Māori to the perches of bird-traps as a lure.