A small open, spreading tree from inland Cape York Peninsula favouring the higher stony ridges.

Ironwood - Xanthostemon umbrosus - Photo by Bill Hinton

The common name refers to the hardness of the heartwood of the trunk. New shoots have a brown velvet texture.

The pale green flowers have four petals and numerous conspicuous stamens.

Masses of flowers appear during early summer. The capsules, which are about the size of a pea, contain brown flattened seeds.