Description:

• Herbs or undershrubs, sometimes dwarf, sometimes with tuberous or strong rootstock, often silky or villous
• Leaves digitately 3-foliolate; stipules free or united along leaf-opposed margin; stipels 0
• Flowers yellow, becoming russet later, often with darker veining, sometimes 1- or 2-nate, usually in many-flowered racemes or subumbels, terminal or opposite leaves; bracts usually small
• Calyx with shortly campanulate tube, 2-lipped; 2 upper lobes free or connate, 3 lower mainly connate
• Petals: vexillum subsessile or shortly clawed, sometimes with 2 callosities at apex of claw, often hairy; wings oblong or obovate, with short or long claw, often transversely ridged; keel slightly incurved, usually planoconvex, sometimes oblong, clawed
• Stamens monadelphous; tube closed or split towards base; anthers unequal, alternately long and short
• Ovary usually shortly stalked, many-ovuled, villous; style incurved, with terminal, sometimes capitate stigma
• Pod linear-oblong, compressed, 2-valved, with valves continuous or transversely constricted between seeds
• Seeds mostly oblong-ovate, with a small hilum
• x = (12, 13, 14, 15, 16)

Nomenclature:

• Argyrolobium Eckl. & Zeyh.
  • Ecklon & Zeyher: 184 (1836) name conserved
  • Harvey: 67 (1862)
  • Polhill: 1000 (1971)

Distribution & Notes:

• Global: Species ± 70, Africa, S Europe to India
• Southern Africa: Species 50, widespread, mainly in eastern area