[2] They have straight, rarely geniculate (bent at a sharp angle), slender or stout,[3] and elongated pedicels (flower stalks), which are between 1.4–9 cm (1–4 in), depending on the species.

[2] The nectaries are adnate (grown from or closely fused to an organ) to the lower third of the pedicel, mostly stipitate (stalked or borne on a stipe), cup-like, sac-like or boat shaped.

[2] The flowers have 5 sepals and 5 petals,[2][3] which are connate (or fused to another organ) and greenish, white, reddish or red in colour shades.

The 5 petals are free to variously connate, imbricate in bud and strongly reflexed (bent) at anthesis (after flowering).

[3] After flowering it produces a leathery looking,[3] fruit or seed capsule, which is almost globose (spherical) or berry-like (when immature).

[3][4] The flowers of the various Schwartzia species are visited by bees, wasps, ants and also, butterflies.

Beginning with the unpublished dissertation by the American botanist Hollis G. Bedell from 1985,[8] in which a division of the genus Norantea was proposed, a classification concept with several smaller genera has now prevailed.

[5] In contrast to Norantea, Schwartzia has relatively short-stalked or sessile nectaries on the lower to middle part of the relatively long flower stalks.

A phylogenetic study in 2002, was based on three regions of the plastid genome, has now confirmed that Norantea is not monophyletic in the old, broad sense.

[9] According to Kew and Plants of the World Online:[1] Schwartzia diazpiedrahitae Gir.-Cañas from western Colombia and Ecuador, which was only described in 2001, was then transferred to the genus Pseudosarcopera as Pseudosarcopera diaz-piedrahitae,[10] but when that genus was declared a synonym of Sarcopera it was transferred back to Schwartzia diazpiedrahitae Gir.-Cañas.

Schwartzia adamantium inhabits the Campos cerrados in particular and reaches an altitude of 1,500 metres (4,900 ft) above sea level, depending on its distribution inland.

Schwartzia brasiliensis, instead, occurs along the coast up to about 1,000 metres (3,300 ft) above sea level and inhabits scrub forests and savannahs on rocky sites.