[3][2] The name honors Austrian ambassador Baron David Ungnad von Sonnegg, son of Andreas Ungnad von Sonnegg, who brought the horse chestnut (Aesculus hippocastanum) to Vienna in 1576, introducing the plant into western Europe.

[4][5][6][7][failed verification – see discussion] It differs from the buckeyes in the related genus Aesculus but the seeds and nuts are similar.

[11] The foliage is toxic and rarely browsed by livestock, but bees produce honey from the floral nectar.

[6] Ungnadia speciosa is a deciduous shrub or small tree (< 25 ft) that is often multi-trunked.

The leaflets are long (3–5 inches or 7.6–12.7 centimetres), narrow, and pointed with slight serrations.