Aspalathus longifolia Benth.

An erect or ascending shrub, 0.8-1.5 m tall, rather sparingly branched, with tail-like leafy branches, covered with spreading, short-woolly pubescence and with subglobose old short-shoots. Leaflets piniform, 25-40 mm long, 0.4-0.5 mm thick, subterete, slightly incurved, rather rigid, acuminate and slightly pungent, with short, grey-tomentose pubescence. Inflorescences mainly unifloral, on lateral short-shoots, dispersed along considerable length of the branches. Flowers relatively small. Bract linear-subulate, 2.2-3.5 mm long, pubescent. Pedicel ±1 mm long, rather thick, densely tomentose. Bracteoles subulate, 2-3 mm long, pubescent. Calyx short, campanulate, densely tomentose to sericeous; lobes very short, triangular, ±0.5 mm long or less, acute, sericeous. Petals light yellow, wings and keel claws about as long as the blades. Standard blade almost circular, 5.5-7 x 5-7 mm, obtuse-retuse, sericeous-tomentose on the back except the (glabrous) base, and with prominent, ± incurved basal ears. Wing blades 4-4.5 x ±1.7 mm, glabrous, with 2 or 3 longitudinal rows of small folds on basal half or more. Keel blades lunate, 4-4.5 x 2-2.3 mm, obtuse, glabrous, with slightly convex upper margin. Pistil long-woolly on ovary and style base; ovules 2. Pod narrowly ovate, 10-11 x 3.6-4.3 mm, with long, white-woolly pubescence.