Lowveld terminalia, Purple-pod terminalia
Terminalia prunioides

Family: Combretaceae

What it is like

A bushy shrub and also a medium sized tree. It grows 5-15 m tall. It can have a girth of 1.5 m. It can have one or many stems. The bark is light grey and ribbed along its length. The branches hang over. The short twigs point upwards and at right angles to the branches. The leaves and flowers are crowded at the ends of the small branches. The bark on the twigs strips off in short lengths. The leaves are small. They are 1.3-5 cm long by 2.5 cm across. They are oval and often widest in the upper half and taper to the base. The leaves are dark green on the upper surface and lighter green and hairy underneath. The flowers are small and starry. They are white with a puff of yellow stamens. They are in lax spikes at the ends of short branches. They have a strong scent. The fruit are 3.5-5 cm long and oval. The seed in the thickened centre is surrounded by a tough flat wing. They turn deep wine red when ripe.

There are about 200-250 Terminalia species. They are tropical.

Where it is found

A tropical plant. It grows in frost free areas. It likes shade. It can grow on sandy or stony soils. It grows naturally in low altitude open woodland and scrub. It occurs on rocky slopes and deep alluvial soils of low altitude rivers. It is very drought resistant. It grows between 30-1,400 m above sea level. It can grow in arid places. In Brisbane Botanical Gardens.

Countries/locations it is found in

Africa, Angola, Australia, Botswana, Central Africa, Djibouti, East Africa, Eritrea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Somalia, South Africa, Southern Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe

How it is used for food

The gum exuded from the tree is edible. The young twigs are boiled in water to make tea. The fresh leaves are used for tea. The seeds are used for coffee. They are ground and boiled with milk and sugar. The seeds are eaten raw. The fruit are eaten as a desert fruit. They are also used as a tea.

Edible parts

Gum, leaves - tea, fruit, seeds, seeds - coffee

How it is grown

Plants can be grown from seeds. The seeds germinate easily. It is best to remove the wings and then soak the seeds for a few hours before sowing. Seeds germinate in about 3 weeks.

It can grow to about 6 m in 15 years. They flower in spring and summer.

Its other names

Local names

Blutfruchtbaum, Chachandau, Codoni, Hareeri, Lowveld cluster-leaf, Mochara, Ohama, Omuhama, Sterkbos, Tiyeeg, Tsamanate

Synonyms

Combretum holstii Engl.; Terminalia benguellensis Welw. ex Hiern.; Terminalia petersii Engl.; Terminalia porphyrocarp Schinz; Terminalia rautanenii Schinz;