Madikwe Shrub Checklist

The shrub layer — raisins, guarris, spike-thorns and the trumpet thorn that defines the arid sweet bushveld.

22 entries · tick boxes are included, so you can print it and take it on a drive.

Filter this list 22 entries

	Common name	Scientific name	Notes
Raisin bushes
	Cross-berry	Grewia occidentalis	Four-lobed fruit and mauve star flowers.
	Donkey Berry	Grewia flavescens	Four-angled stems.
	Silver Raisin	Grewia monticola
	Velvet Raisin	Grewia flava	Brandy bush. Sweet berries eaten by people, birds and jackal alike; a key browse shrub.
	White Raisin	Grewia bicolor
Arid bushveld shrubs
	Blue Bush	Diospyros lycioides	Twigs used as toothbrushes.
	Camphor Bush	Tarchonanthus camphoratus	Crushed leaves smell strongly of camphor.
	Kalahari Currant	Searsia tenuinervis
	Sandpaper Bush	Ehretia rigida	Rough leaves; masses of small blue flowers in spring.
	Trumpet Thorn	Catophractes alexandri	Grey-white trumpet flowers; forms dense stands on calcrete soils.
	Western Rhigozum	Rhigozum brevispinosum	Yellow flowers after good rain.
Common bushveld shrubs
	Bushveld Grape	Rhoicissus tridentata	A scrambling vine with edible purple berries.
	Common Spike-thorn	Gymnosporia buxifolia	Heavily scented white flowers that most people find unpleasant.
	Common Sugarbush	Protea caffra	Where: the higher slopes of the Dwarsberg. Verify presence with the reserve before publishing.
	Dwarf Buffalo-thorn	Ziziphus zeyheriana	A low suckering shrub of overgrazed ground.
	Elephant's Root	Elephantorrhiza elephantina	Ferny leaves from a massive underground rootstock; survives fire easily.
	Magic Guarri	Euclea divinorum	Often shrubby on shallow soils.
	Num-num	Carissa bispinosa	Forked spines, milky latex, edible red fruit.
	Sickle Bush	Dichrostachys cinerea	Also grows as a small tree; a leading indicator of bush encroachment.
	Small-leaved Guarri	Euclea undulata
	Wild Asparagus	Asparagus laricinus	Scrambling and thorny; forms thickets.
	Wild Cotton	Gossypium herbaceum subsp. africanum	The indigenous cotton, with yellow hibiscus-like flowers.