 The buttress roots can be clearly seen in photographs extending up the trunk of some specimens and extending out from the trunk as much as and then continuing below ground to a total length of 

The trunk and many of the larger branches are often crowded with large simple thorns.These major branches, usually 4 to 6 in number, can be up to thick and form a crown of foliage as much as in width.The palmate leaves are composed of 5 to 9 leaflets, each up to long.