The genus was described by Jean Louis Marie Poiret and published in Encyclopédie Méthodique in 1808.

That would mean that the current V. divaricata is simply a darker form limited to the forested region of Knysna, South Africa.

[6] Below is a list of offers species of the genus Virgilia accepted as of July 2014, sorted alphabetically.

These are small to medium sized trees, up to 15 to 20 meters tall, filling space easily in the garden.

The tree has shiny green, fern-like, pinnate foliage and displays attractive pea-like, mauve/pink, fragrant flowers (which smell like bubblegum) during warmer months that will be followed by dark, leathery seed pods.