Small to fairly large tree up to 35 m tall; bole often short and bent, up to 80 cm in diameter; bark scaly, dull grey to brown; crown open, spreading, flat-topped, often with pendent branches; young branches shortly hairy. Leaves alternate, bipinnately compound, with 4–8 pairs of pinnae; petiole and rachis shortly hairy, with glands on the upper side between the pinnae; leaflets opposite in 10–25 pairs per pinna but lowest leaflet solitary, slightly obliquely oblong, 7–17 mm × 2.5–6 mm, glabrous. Inflorescence an axillary globose head, 1–3 together; peduncle 1–4.5 cm long. Flowers bisexual, regular, usually 5-merous, white, sessile; one to several central flowers in each flower head larger; calyx cup-shaped, 3–3.5 mm long, with short teeth; corolla funnel-shaped, 5–8.5 mm long, glabrous; stamens numerous, united at base, c. 12 mm long; ovary superior, 1-celled, style filiform, about as long as stamens. Fruit a narrowly oblong pod 10–28 cm × 1–2 cm, curved or spirally twisted, compressed, red-brown to blackish, constricted between the seeds, up to 20-seeded, breaking up into 1-seeded segments. Seeds oblong to lens-shaped, flattened, 6–9 mm × 6.5–7 mm, smooth, brown. Seedling with epigeal germination.

Anodyne (decoction of bark)

PROTAbase: Albizia altissima

A decoction of bark is used to treat toothache and stomach-ache, and against pulmonary affections, and externally to treat sores. A leaf decoction is used in a vapour bath to treat colds. Burned leaves are applied to snakebites.