Botanical name |
Leucosidea sericea |
Other names |
Oldwood; ouhout (Afrikaans); umtshitshi (Zulu) |
Family |
Rosaceae |
Dimensions |
A straggling shrub or a small, evergreen tree of around 4 m in height, occasionally reaching 7 m; multistemmed and may become 5 m wide |
Description of stem |
Brown flaking bark on irregular and gnarled trunks, young branches have hairy stipules remaining on them |
Description of leaves |
Alternate, compound with about four pairs of leaflets as well as a terminal one; dark green on top, lower surface greyish and covered in silky hairs; leaflets obovate; margins serrated, tend to curl inward from the sides; the leaf veins are markedly sunken on the upper surface |
Description of flowers |
Clustered in terminal sprays, five yellow to light-green petals, appearing in spring into summer |
Desciption of seed/fruit |
Clusters of small fruits at the flower base |
Description of roots |
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Variation |
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Propagation and cultivation |
Grows from seed or cuttings, hardy and fast-growing |
Tolerances |
Frost resistant |
Uses |
Firewood; a paste from the leaves is said to be used in the treatment of ophthalmia in Kwazulu-Natal; browsed by livestock and game; planted in gardens as hedges and as bonsai |
Ecological rarity |
Common, may invade in areas where soil neglect has occurred |
Pests and diseases |
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Other |
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Location |
Occurring on grassy slopes, in bushkloofs and along river banks |
Distribution (SA provinces) |
Eastern Cape, Free State, Kwazulu-Natal, Mpumalanga, Limpopo, Gauteng and North West |
Country |
South Africa, Lesotho, Swaziland, Zimbabwe |