Cape gorse species generally are shrubs or sometimes shrublets. They typically are bushy, but some species may be sprawling or erect with free-standing branches. The flowers of most species are plentiful in season, a rich, showy yellow very common in the Western Cape mountains in particular. Cape gorse leaves are sessile and are simple in some species, but trifoliate in others. The fruit of cape gorse is a pod, and in the majority of species the ovary has two ovules that yield only one seed per pod. There are over 270 species, mainly endemic to southwestern fynbos regions in South Africa, with over fifty occurring on the Cape Peninsula alone.