Pterocarpus rotundifolius subsp. rotundifolius is a deciduous tree, here growing a narrowly erect shape that in time should fill out to become more rounded. All the South African P. rotundifolius trees belong to this subspecies. The other two subspecies are found to the north, around the Zambezi and further.

The tree is commonly known as round-leaved teak or round-leaved bloodwood, belonging to the same genus as the well-known timber tree, P. angolensis, which it does not match in the quality of its timber (Coates Palgrave, 2002; Schmidt, et al, 2002).