About Erythrina zeyheri Harv.
Erythrina zeyheri Harv. is a geoxylic plant sometimes referred to as an "underground tree". It grows annual stems that reach 50 to 60 cm in length. Its leaves are glabrous, leathery, trifoliolate, and have large leaflets. The leaf rachis and main leaf venation, which are prominently raised on the lower leaf surface, are covered in recurved spines on both leaf surfaces. Petioles and stems are also armed with these spines to discourage browsers. Shoots and leaves are deciduous, and die back during harsh highveld winters; the plant survives this period via an extensive woody, tuberous rootstock. Upright inflorescences grow alongside leaves during summer, from October to January. The drooping flowers are most commonly scarlet, and rarely white, and are topped by red calyxes. When mature, the plant produces smooth black pods that each hold a few large seeds. The seeds are 1.0 to 1.7 cm long, hard, and orange-red in colour.
