Dialium schlechteri is a small to medium-sized (5-15 m) deciduous tree found in sand forest and coastal forests in Maputaland (Tongaland) in northern KwaZulu-Natal. It is usually multi-stemmed with a dense rounded crown. The bark is pale grey, smooth and mottled. Leaves are compound, opposite, subopposite to alternate, with 3-6 pairs of leaflets and a terminal one; leaflets are oblong and shiny green with asymmetric bases and entire margins. The leaves turn yellow before dropping.

Small flowers (10 mm long) are borne in terminal compact branched heads (80 x 80 mm diameter). They have a strong but unpleasant scent. Petals are absent. The inside of the calyx lobes is white; on the outside they are covered with golden brown velvety hairs.

The fruit pods are oval, thin-shelled and velvety red-brown (25 mm long). A bright orange, dry pith surrounds the seeds. The brown fruits are usually borne in profusion from autumn onwards.