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Small tree up to 10 m. high. Young stems and inflorescences covered with a chocolate-brown tomentum of short ± spreading hairs. Leaves: petiole 0.8–5.5 cm.; lamina elliptic to obovate or oblanceolate, 1.7–3 times as long as broad, 4–16 cm. long, 2–7 cm. wide, rounded to cuneate at the base, obtuse to emarginate at the apex, coriaceous, with a reticulate venation prominent on both surfaces; both surfaces glabrous, at least at maturity. Flowers in fairly lax terminal or axillary racemes often branching to form panicles up to 22 cm. long, the axes conspicuously brown tomentose; bracts ± ovate, up to 6 × 4 mm., concave, usually 3-partite and apparently derived from a median reduced leaf and a pair of stipules on either side, caducous leaving a white scar; pedicels 4–9 mm.; bracteoles broadly elliptic to suborbicular, 3–6 × 2.5–5 mm., both inserted immediately beneath the calyx on the upper side of the pedicel and often ± fused at their base. Calyx 13–17 mm. long, brown tomentose, at anthesis splitting to the base on one side and almost to half way on the other side, with all 5 teeth usually becoming free at the apex, the whole eventually breaking off in one piece by a transverse break just above the base leaving a small ring surrounding the receptacle. Petals white to pinkish or violet-tinged with a yellow blotch; standard (16–) 18–26 mm. long; wings 16–21 mm. long; keel-petals 16–18 mm. long. Stamen-filaments densely hairy; anthers 2.5 mm. long. Ovary 5–8 mm. long, brown villous. Pods ± 17 × 2.5 cm., strongly curved upwards above the middle, brown tomentose when immature but perhaps glabrescent at maturity.