Plant is a large shrub or small tree with light gray bark. Its preferred habitat is pineland bogs or wet sites. Distribution is throughout the Escambia region.

The smooth, gray, black-speckled branches of this shrub bears small, yellowish-green flowers on purplish leafstalks, in loose clusters arising from the lower leaf axils. The flowers are yellowish and appear in paniculate clusters. The flower cluster forms at the time of new leaf growth expansion.

The leaves are odd-pinnately compound with 7 to 10 elliptic to ovalm usually entire (no teeth and no lobes) leaflets. The fachis is purplish (an important diagnostic character).

Fruit is a drupe.