Short-lived erect perennial or perhaps sometimes annual, up to 1·5 m. tall, almost glabrous when mature but usually weakly and sparsely pilose when young, especially on the underside of the leaflet-midribs and on the inflorescence-rhachis.. Stipules up to 5 mm. long, deeply divided into 2–3 very acute narrow lobes, the outer of which usually points downwards; leaf-rhachis up to 10 cm. long; leaflets 9–25, opposite or alternate, oblanceolate, shortly mucronate, up to 20 mm. long and 6 mm. wide.. Racemes 7–12-flowered, the rhachis up to 7 cm. long, including a peduncle of up to 5 cm.; bracts narrowly lanceolate, ± 2 mm. long; pedicel 2 mm. long.. Calyx-tube 2 mm., teeth 1–1·5 mm. long.. Standard 6–7 mm. long, 3–5 mm. wide; blade of wing 1–5 mm. wide, 4 mm. long, including an oblong basal lobe 1 mm. long; claw 2 mm. long; blade of keel 3 mm. long, 1–5 mm. wide at the base, 2·2–2·5 mm. near the tip; claw 2 mm. long.. Filament-tube 4 mm., free parts 1 mm., anthers 0·3 mm. long.. Ovary lanceolate, 4 mm. long, 4–6-ovulate; style 1·5–2·5 mm. long, curved rather below the middle.. Pod flat, elliptic-lanceolate or rhombic-lanceolate, curved downward as it tapers to a short beak, up to 20 mm. long, 5–9 mm. wide, 1–2 mm. thick, 2–5-seeded; veins from the lower suture much longer than those from the upper suture and meeting them close to the latter.. Seeds flat, oval, notched near the narrow end, olive-brown, ± 3·5 mm. long by 2 mm. wide; funicle 1·3 mm. long.. Fig. 148/1–9.
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