Formerly known as Podocarpus elongatus, Afrocarpus elongatus is the smallest of the South African yellowwoods. It usually reaches a mature height of 6m in the landscape although it can reach 20 m when growing in sheltered, well-watered ravines. This tree is low branching with a crown as wide as its height.

Unlike other yellowwood trees, the Breede River yellowwood is normally multi-stemmed. This slow growing tree is characterised with narrow blue-green leaves. The bark is smooth, grey to brown, sometimes peeling longitudinally in long narrow strips. This tree is dioecious, there are male trees and female trees. The flowers appear on the tree in the form of cones. Male cones are cream to pinkish when fresh and are solitary or in groups of 2 – 5 in leaf axils. The female cone is reduced to 1 or 2 fertile scales, each bearing 1 seed.

The dense growth and beautiful foliage colour of this tree makes it a great choice for specimen planting in the ground or in large containers and for use as a screening hedge. Although it is naturally dense, it can easily be trimmed to create a formal hedge or shaped as a topiary. Its ability to retain most of its leaves makes it a low maintenance tree hence suitability for planting on driveways, patios and also near pools.