Trees, up to 20 m tall. Bark dark brown. Branches with obvious, black, straight and minute prickles; core pulpy. Leaves pinnately 3-foliolate, usually clustered at branch tip; stipules lanceolate, deciduous; petiole 10-15 cm, usually without prickles; leaflets broadly ovate or rhomboid-ovate, 15-30 × 15-30 cm, membranous, both surfaces glabrous, basal veins 3, lateral veins 5 pairs, base broadly cuneate or truncate, margin entire, apex acuminate to obtuse; base of leaflet with a pair of glands similar to stipules. Raceme terminal, 10-16 cm; peduncle robust, woody, 7-10 cm, pubescent; flowers paired. Calyx spathelike, 2-3 cm, mouth oblique, split on one side. Corolla red, 6-7 cm; standard elliptic, 5-6 × ca. 2.5 cm, apex obtuse, shortly clawed; wings and keels subequal; keel petals separate. Ovary micro-villous; style glabrous. Legume black, reniform, ca. 1.5 × 1 cm. Seeds puniceous, oblong or oblong-ellipsoid. Fl. Feb-May, fr. Apr-Aug. 2n = 42.
Tallo: color ritidoma ; superficie(s) ; acúleo(s) . Hoja: pecíolo(s) ; forma par estipela(s) ; lámina(s) ; forma foliolo(s) ; margen(es) . Inflorescencia: pseudo-racemoso . Flor: cáliz ; estandarte ; ala(s) ; carena(s) ; androceu ; antera(s) . Fruto: legume(s) forma . Semilla: forma ; color .
Caule: cor ritidoma ; superfície(s) ; acúleo(s) . Folha: pecíolo(s) ; formato par estipela(s) ; lâmina(s) ; formato folíolo(s) ; margem(ns) . Inflorescência: pseudo-racemoso . Flor: cálice(s) ; estandarte ; ala(s) ; quilha(s) ; androceu ; antera(s) . Fruto: legume(s) forma . Semente: forma ; cor .
Stem: colour ritidome ; surface ; prickle . Leaf: petiole ; shape pair stipel ; blade ; shape leaflet ; margin . Inflorescence: pseudo-racemose . Flower: calyx ; standard ; wing ; keel ; androecium ; anther . Fruit: pod form . Seed: form ; colour .
Stems pale, with short straight black prickles, at first densely stellate tomentose but soon glabrous.
Leaflets ovate to broadly rhomboid, rather thin, 4–19·5 cm. long, 3–21 cm. wide, acute to acuminate (often bluntly) at the apex, truncate, rounded or slightly cordate at the base, at first sparsely stellate pubescent or tomentose beneath, later almost glabrous, sometimes variegated (not in Africa); midrib not prickly; petiole 2–20 cm. long, not prickly; rhachis 1–7 cm. long; petiolules 0·5–1·4 cm. long.
Inflorescences dense, many-flowered, covered with a deciduous stellate ferruginous tomentum; rhachis 10–20 cm. long; peduncle 7–17 cm. long; pedicels 8–11 mm. long, tomentose; bracts and bracteoles oblong, 2–3 mm. long, 0·5–1 mm. wide, soon deciduous.
Calyx fusiform in bud, narrowed above and terminating in 2 filiform lobes 2–4 mm. long and a thickened knob, later splitting deeply on the vexillar side to form a spathe, 2–4 cm. long, at first covered with a ferruginous stellate tomentum, later glabrous, dark-lined when dry.
Pods stipitate, sausage-shaped or elongate-cylindrical, 12–30(–40) cm. long, 2–3 cm. wide, (3–)4–13-seeded, moderately but not deeply constricted between the seeds, densely stellate tomentose when very young, soon glabrous; valves reticulately veined like a ground-nut pod.
Seeds pinkish or purplish-red, oblong or oblong-ellipsoid, sometimes slightly curved, longest dimension 1·3–2 cm., shorter dimension 0·8–1·2 cm., 0·8–1·1 cm. thick; hilum oblong or oblong-oblanceolate, 5–8·5 mm. long.
Standard dark crimson or scarlet, short-clawed, elliptic, 5–6(–7) cm. long, 2–2·5 cm. wide, rounded; keel and wings about equal, ± a third the length of the standard.
Tree 6–12 m. tall, with much branched crown; branches prickly; flowering when leaves not present.
