Upper canopy or even emergent tree of the rainforest and semi-deciduous forest, and gallery forests, to 50 m tall and 150 (180) cm Ø; base of the tree swollen or with low, thick spreading root swellings, developing into heavy root ridges as high as 90 cm and 40 cm thick, and spreading far from the tree in sinuous curves. Bole straight and cylindrical, abruptly turning into a heavily branched, spreading crown, characterized by its clusters of leaves at the end of the twigs. Slash light brown with a strong turpentine smell, slowly exuding an imflammable resin. Leaves alternate, imparipinnate, clustered, with 17 – 25 leaflets with a 2 -5 mm long petiolule; terminal leaflet with a cuneate base and a longer petiolule. Fruits purplish, about 3 cm long, containing a 6-ribbed nut of ± 2.5 cm. Seedlings very characteristic with 5-fingered cotelydons.

A small understory tree of the coastal forest zone but also in the hinterland, to 20 m high and 20 (-30) cm Ø, with many laterally flattened stilt roots, a straight, slender bole, and a deep, finely branched crown. Not to be confused with Xylopia staudtii which has a similar base but different leaves and fruits. Bark normally quite smooth and grey; slash thin and hard, gritty-granular and mottled yellow-white, with a strong turpentine smell. Leaves impari-pinnate, with the base of the petiole markedly swollen; leaflets opposite. Fruits purplish black when ripe, ellipsoid but excentric, flattened, with the remains of the style on one side, 2 – 2.5 cm x about 1.5 cm, with a turpentine smell.

Locally abundant understory tree but occasionally an upper story tree to 30 m tall and 100 cm Ø. The base of the tree is swollen with low root swellings or root spurs to 60 cm, markedly transversely striate, coiled or wrinkled, sometimes extending in wide spreading surface roots. Stem usually a bit angular, the upper part twisted and low-branched. Bark thin, grey-greenish/blackish, scaly with irregular scales leaving yellowish marks after shedding, giving the tree a “patchy” habit. Slash brittle outside, somewhat fibrous inside, pink-red brown, strongly fragrant, a bit like turpentine, watery or slowly exuding a gummous liquid. Leaves impari-pinnate, usually with 3 pairs of opposite leaflets + one terminal one (sometimes missing); leaves of young trees with more leaflets and longer (- 60 cm). Petiole slightly flattened above, sometimes with faint lateral ridges near the base, often jointed at the top; petiolules jointed at the top. Fruit an ovoid berry ± 2 x 1.5 cm, slightly laterally flattened, orange when ripe with a fleshy, fragrant, edible pulp (‘monkey plum’), containing one thin-walled nut with one side deeply grooved from base to top. See also PROTA database.