Polygala pinifolia is a shrub that grows to 1,5 m. The plant in this photo shows sparse branching from the base and higher up. Lower down the branches become rigid and woody. The plant is found in clay soil among scrub and renosterveld of the Little Karoo, also at higher elevations in the Swartberge from Oudtshoorn to Ladismith.

This specimen was photographed in October in the Rooiberg in the southern Cape (Vlok and Schutte-Vlok, 2010; JSTOR).