Aspalathus villosa Thunb.

A slender, small shrublet with decumbent or procumbent (rarely half-ascending) branches 0.1-0.4 m long; inflorescences only a little above the ground. Young branches sparsely to densely sericeous. Leaves trifoliolate, on an inconspicuous leaf base, soon with axillary short-shoots. Leaflets oblanceolate or broadly linear, 3-8 x 0.5-1 mm, weak, acute (or sub-obtuse), silvery sericeous. Inflorescence of 1-4 sessile flowers in a terminal group. Bract oblanceolate, 2-3.5 x ±1 mm, convex, silvery sericeous. Bracteoles linear, ±4.5 x 0.5 mm, sericeous. Calyx tube narrow, sericeous, lobes oblong-oblanceolate, 2-3 mm long (longer than the tube), obtuse or subacute, silvery sericeous. Petals light (lemon) yellow, later partly reddish. Standard blade narrowly ovate, ±8 x 4.5 mm, sericeous on the back. Wing blades oblong, broadest in apical half, 5-6 x 1.5-2 mm, sericeous on lower third, with several rows of minute folds on basal upper third. Keel narrowly lunate, ±6 x 2-2.5 mm, hairy on lower half. Pistil sericeous on ovary and basal half of style; ovules 2. Pod triangular to obliquely lanceolate, ±7 x 2.5 mm, smooth, sericeous.