Plants of the Week

Grewia flavescens

Common names: sandpaper raisin, rough-leaved raisinbush, square-stemmed raisin (Eng.); skurweblaarrosyntjie (Afr.); mogwane (N. Sotho); loklolo (Swazi); nsihana, nc

Family: Malvaceae

The light green Grewia flavescens has beautiful, bright yellow, and sometimes fragrant flowers. It is a frost-resistant, hardy shrub or small...

05 / 11 / 2012 | M.S. Mothogoane | National Herbarium Pretoria

Grewia hexamita

Common names: giant raisin (Eng.); reuserosyntjie, blinkblaarrosyntjie (Afr.); umsiphane (Swazi); nsihana, guguna, nsihani, sipane (Tsonga); mukunukunu (Venda); uml

Family: Malvaceae

The glossy dark green leafed Grewia hexamita has beautiful large, yellow, honey-scented flowers. It is a frost-resistant, hardy shrub or small...

20 / 08 / 2012 | M.S. Mothogoane | National Herbarium Pretoria

Grewia monticola

Common names: grey raisin, silver raisin (Eng.); vaalrosyntjie (Afr.); umsiphane (Swazi); nsihana (Tsonga); mogwanakg & ocirc;mo, mogwana (Tswana); umlalampunzi, is

Family: Malvaceae

The mountain-loving Grewia monticola has beautiful, bright yellow flowers. It is a frost-resistant, hardy shrub or small tree that is adaptable to all...

26 / 11 / 2012 | M.S. Mothogoane | National Herbarium Pretoria

Grewia occidentalis

Common names: cross-berry, four-corners (E), kruisbessie (A), Mokukutu (Setsw.), Mogwane (N.Sotho), iLalanyathi (Zulu), umSipane (Siswati), umNqabaza (Xhosa), Mulem

Family: Malvaceae

This attractive indigenous shrub has a wide natural distribution....

19 / 11 / 2001 | Sharon Turner | Walter Sisulu NBG

Grewia robusta

Common names: Karoo crossberry, Karoo crossberry raisin (Eng.); karookruisbessie (Afr); umnqabaza (Xhosa).

Family: Malvaceae

The sweetly scented Grewia robusta has beautiful, bright pink flowers. It is a frost-resistant, hardy shrub or small tree that is adaptable to...

24 / 12 / 2012 | M.S. Mothogoane | National Herbarium Pretoria

Grewia lasiocarpa

Common names: forest raisin (Eng.); bosrosyntjie (Afr.); umhlolo (Xhosa); ilalanyathi (Zulu)

Family: Malvaceae

Grewia lasiocarpa is a wonderful fast-growing small tree, ideal for use as a screen, with lovely large, star-shaped pink flowers and fruit that is...

11 / 06 / 2007 | Cherise Viljoen | Kirstenbosch NBG

Greyia

Common names: wild bottlebrushes

Family: Melianthaceae

This family occurs only in South Africa, and consists of a single genus, Greyia Hook. & Harv. with 3 species, all small trees or shrubs. The...

20 / 09 / 2010 | F Nonyane | National Herbarium Pretoria

Greyia flanaganii

Common names: Kei bottlebrush (E), Kei baakhout (A), uSinga lwamaxhegokazi (X).

Family: Melianthaceae

Greyia flanaganii has great horticultural potential as a spring flowering shrub that is yet to be fully explored by growers and gardeners. This tree...

14 / 10 / 2002 | Giles Mbambezeli | Kirstenbosch NBG

Gerrardanthus tomentosus

Common names: hairy gerrardanthus

Family: Cucurbitaceae

An uncommon tendril climber, with dark green, triangularly lobed leaves and a large succulent caudex, that grows among boulders and stones, in moist, shaded...

26 / 04 / 2021 | Buyisiwe Dlwati | CREW

Greyia sutherlandii

Common names: glossy bottlebrush, mountain bottlebrush, Natal bottlebrush, wild bottlebrush, beacon tree (Eng.); blinkblaarbaakhout, Natalse baakhout (Afr.); isidw

Family: Melianthaceae

This is a most decorative plant and is becoming popular as an ornamental subject in gardens....

02 / 10 / 2006 | Giles Mbambezeli | Kirstenbosch NBG

Greyia radlkoferi

Common names: woolly bottlebrush, Transvaal bottlebrush, wild bottlebrush (Eng.); wollerige baakhout (Afr.); isidwadwa (Zulu); inhlazane, indlebelembila (Swazi)

Family: Melianthaceae

The gnarled branches of Greyia radlkoferi make this small tree or shrub an attractive structural element for any garden. In nature, growing in misty gullies...

11 / 10 / 2004 | De La Cruz P | Kirstenbosch NBG

Gunnera perpensa

Common names: river pumpkin, wild rhubarb (Eng.); rivierpampoen, wilde ramenas (Afr.); qobo (Sotho); uqobho (Swati); rambola-vhadzimu, shambola-vhadzimu (Venda); ip

Family: Gunneraceae

Is this what the dinosaurs ate? Read on to find out.The genus Gunnera has numerous unique characteristics, some of which indicate that these plants have...

19 / 12 / 2005 | R Glen | KwaZulu-Natal NBG

Gymnosporia harveyana

Common names: black forest spikethorn (Eng.); swartbospendoring (Afr.)

Family: Celastraceae

This is an evergreen, dense, spiny shrub or small tree, with lovely shiny foliage and small white-and-red fruits. It is suitable for small gardens as a...

14 / 06 / 2004 | M Jordan | National Herbarium Pretoria

Gladiolus rehmannii

Common names: Bushveld gladiolus (Eng.); bosveldpypie (Afr.)

Family: Iridaceae

Gladiolus rehmannii is a very attractive garden plant, forming part of the tremendous diversity within the Iris family. It has large, white to pale...

18 / 05 / 2015 | Malesolo Magoele | Millennium Seed Bank Partnership

Gonioma kamassi

Common names: kamassi, Knysna boxwood (Eng.); kamassiehout (Afr.); igala-gala (isiXhosa)

Family: Apocynaceae

A small, unusual and rewarding, rounded, evergreen shrub with fragrant white or pale yellow flowers that are produced in small clusters at the ends of...

27 / 10 / 2014 | Sisanda Alakhe Velembo-Mhlauli | Kirstenbosch NBG

Gasteria loedolffiae

Common names: Mzimvubu ox-tongue (Engl.); Mzimvubu-beestong (Afr.)

Family: Asphodelaceae

Gasteria loedolffiae is a aloe-like plant growing as solitary specimens or forming small groups on sheer shale cliffs of the Mzimvubu and Msikaba...

01 / 06 / 2015 | Ernst van Jaarsveld | Kirstenbosch NBG

Gymnanthemum myrianthum

Common names: blue bitter-tea, eared bitter-tea, blue vernonia, eared vernonia, poison tree-vernonia, wild lilac (Eng.); bloubittertee, bosbloutee (Afr.); uhluhlung

Family: Asteraceae

An unusual, striking, robust shrub or small tree that is suddenly beautiful when in flower in late autumn, with eye-catching clumps of mauve to white to...

05 / 12 / 2016 | Alice Notten | Kirstenbosch NBG

Gossypium herbaceum subsp. africanum

Common names: wild cotton (Eng.); wildekatoen (Afr.); kotini (Xho.); litjinda (Swa.); ugampokwe, umgawuma (Zul.)

Family: Malvaceae

The wild cotton plant, Gossypium herbaceum subsp. africanum, is often only noticed when in fruit or when bearings its hibiscus-like flowers....

13 / 10 / 2014 | Mandisa Kondlo | Walter Sisulu NBG

Grewia retinervis

Common names: Kalahari raisin, false sandpaper raisin, Kalahari donkey berry, Kalahari grewia, Kalahari raisin bush, kalahari-sand grewia, kalahari sand raisin (Eng

Family: Malvaceae

Grewia retinervis is a hardy shrub with bright yellow flowers in summer and shiny, reddish brown edible fruits....

18 / 03 / 2019 | Cathbert Makgakga | National Herbarium Pretoria

Grewia microthyrsa

Common names: sand raisin (Eng.), sandrosyntjie (Afr.), mufuka (Tshivenda), nsihana (Xitsonga), umunywane, ilalanyathi, ikolo (isiZulu).

Family: Malvaceae

An indigenous shrub with edible fruit and attractive flowers....

30 / 10 / 2023 | Nompumelelo Nkosi | Pretoria NBG

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