Plants of the Week

Ozoroa paniculosa

Common names: common resin tree, bushveld ozoroa (Eng.): gewone harpuisboom (Afr.); isifice (Zulu); monoko (N. Sotho/Sepedi); mudumbula (Venda)

Family: Anacardiaceae

An attractive, small to medium-sized tree. Its leaves are bluish grey above and silvery below with strikingly straight, parallel side veins....

12 / 04 / 2010 | Terence Mabela | Walter Sisulu NBG

Otholobium virgatum

Common names: carpet pea, mat otholobium, eight-day-healing bush (Eng.); agtdaegeneesbossie (Afr.)

Family: Fabaceae

This is a mat-forming and low-growing, trailing, ground cover with masses of mauve-pink, pea-like flowers in spring....

24 / 11 / 2014 | Zoleka Maphanga | Kirstenbosch NBG

Obetia tenax

Common names: mountain nettle, rock tree-nettle, tree nettle, giant nettle, stinging nettle tree (Eng.); bergbrandnetel, rotsbrandnetel (Afr.); lebati (Northern Sot

Family: Urticaceae

An awesome small tree with the most striking flowers and leaves with stinging hairs, that can be cooked and eaten as a vegetable....

14 / 10 / 2019 | Sephatle Evans Molekoa | Lowveld NBG

Oftia africana

Common names: lazy bush (Eng.); koekblommetjiesbos, sukkelbossie (Afr.)

Family: Scrophulariaceae

Rough to the touch, this shrublet has pretty white flowers that have a sweet, chocolaty fragrance....

17 / 07 / 2017 | Sisanda Alakhe Velembo-Mhlauli | Kirstenbosch NBG

Olea exasperata

Common names: dune olive, coast olive (Eng.); duineolien, glashoutolien, slanghout, vlashoutolien, basterolienhout (Afr.)

Family: Oleaceae

Olea exasperata, one of the wild olive trees of South Africa, is an ornamental shrub or small tree that generally occurs in coastal scrub, on sand dunes...

18 / 11 / 2019 | Sisanda Alakhe Velembo-Mhlauli | Kirstenbosch NBG

Otholobium fruticans

Common names: Cape Town pea, roundhead otholobium

Family: Fabaceae

An attractive, mat-forming groundcover or semi-shrub that bears beautiful sprays of pea-like, purple-blue flowers in spring....

21 / 08 / 2017 | Sisanda Alakhe Velembo-Mhlauli | Kirstenbosch NBG

Orthosiphon labiatus

See Ocimum labiatum....

17 / 12 / 2001 | | Kirstenbosch NBG

Oxyanthus pyriformis subsp. pyriformis

Oxyanthus pyriformis flowers and foliage (Geoff Nichols)

Common names: hatpins loquat, Natal loquat (Eng.); hoedespeldlukwart, Natallukwart (Afr.); isibinda esingakhali-amasi (isiZulu); umgungununu (siSwati)

Family: Rubiaceae

Medley Wood described this loquat-like shrub as ‘an exceedingly handsome shrub of good habit, growing generally under large trees in those parts...

11 / 01 / 2016 | Alec Naidoo | Pretoria NBG

Oxalis hirta

Common names: hairy oxalis (Eng.); suring (Afr.)

Family: Oxalidaceae

A vigorous, easy-to-grow, ornamental Oxalis with branched stems and attractive magenta-pink flowers in winter and spring....

13 / 01 / 2020 | Azwinndini Mudau | Free State NBG

Orthochilus ensatus

Common names: imphamba lentaba (isiZulu

Family: Orchidaceae

This is an attractive orchid that can be grown as a container subject and was previously known as Eulophia ensata....

14 / 04 / 2014 | T Lukoto | Free State NBG

Osteospermum monstrosum

Common names: one-eye monster (Eng.); trekkertjie (Afr.)

Family: Asteraceae

Osteospermum monstrosum is arguably the commonest Namaqualand spring annual. Most people will have noticed these small plants with yellow flowerheads and...

11 / 07 / 2022 | Nicola Bergh | Compton Herbarium