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Erect suffrutex, up to 5 m high; stems, slender, angular, ribbed, with yellowish pubescence (roughly rusty pubescent in var. hirta Harv.). Leaves 3-85 mm long, 3-9-jugate, shortly petioled. Leaflets obovate, emarginate to mucronate, flat or complicate; upper surface thinly pubescent, lower surface more densely pubescent (oblong, uncinate in var. latifolia Harv.). Stipules subulate. Inflorescences terminal and axillary, laxly racemose, many-flowered. Flowers white to pink. Calyx: lobes ovate-acuminate, ± length of tube (lobes long and narrowly, lanceolate in var. longidens H.M.L.Forbes). Petals: standard densely hairy on outside. Flowering time Sept.-Apr. Pod stipitate, narrow, linear or slightly curved, pubescent, beaked with remains of style.
Leaves pinnate with (4)5–11 pairs of leaflets; petiole 0–2(2.7) cm long, petiole and rachis together (1.5)2.5–9 cm long; leaflets (0.8)1–2.5(3.5) × 0.2–1.0(1.3) cm, narrowly oblong or linear-elliptic to oblanceolate or obovate (see groups below), cuneate at the base, ± acute to rounded at the apex; upper surface glabrous or pubescent, lower surface appressed-pubescent; stipules 3–9(11) × 0.3–1 mm.
Flowers in terminal and axillary inflorescences up to 15(25) cm long, the lateral ones often exceeding the leaves and ascending to form a pseudocorymb; bracts 2–5 × 0.5 mm, linear-triangular; pedicels 2–5 mm long.
Calyx 2.5–7 mm long (see groups below), appressed-pubescent; lateral teeth half as long as to ± equalling the tube; upper teeth connate for about half their length.
Pods 33–52 × 3–5 mm, straight or slightly and gradually curved upwards, fairly thinly to densely pubescent with usually short greyish hairs.
Probably usually short-lived perennial 60–150(200) cm high, erect, branched, sometimes becoming somewhat woody at the base.
Young stems with appressed to spreading short brown hairs, particularly on the ridges of the stem.
Petals 6–10 mm long, purplish to pink, or white and purple.
Ovary pubescent; style glabrous, not twisted.
Staminal tube joined above.
Seeds 7–8(10).
