Trees, ca. 10 m tall, sometimes to 30 m tall. Young shoots ferruginous puberulent. Leaves glabrous; pinnae usually 3 pairs, opposite or subopposite, 20-30 cm; petiolules 2.5-3 mm; leaf­lets 8-12, ovate to ovate-elliptic, 5-8 × 2.5-4 cm, base rounded, oblique, margin entire, apex acuminate. Panicles 15-20 cm; pe­duncles ferruginous pubescent. Calyx outside pilose; lobes ob­long, margin densely pubescent. Petals pale yellowish green, longer than calyx lobes, oblanceolate, inside and marginally densely pubescent. Stamens ca. 2 × as long as petals, glabrous. Ovary oblong, densely yellowish white pubescent, 10-12-ovuled. Legume compressed, oblong, 10-18 × 3.5-4 cm, with reticulate veins. Seeds blackish brown, slightly compressed, oblong, 2-2.5 × 1.5-2 cm. Fl. May-Jun, fr. Aug-Oct.

The wood is dark brown, hard, and bright, with fine, close grain. A famous hardwood, it is used for ship building and for pillars of houses.

Sparse or dense forests, mountain slopes. Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Taiwan, Zhejiang [Vietnam].