I LOVE THE TREE WITH THE LEAVEs THAT DOnt break

​Maytenus acuminate, silky bark, is a small tree occurring in forest, on forest margins, on rocky outcrops in mountainous regions and along streams. This is our intern student, Zaniel April's favourite tree. She finds this tree very interesting and beautiful.

The leaves are leathery, glossy, dark green above, pale green below with elastic (rubbery) threads. These threads become evident on breaking the lamina. Its small, creamy, green flowers usually comes in clusters and its seeds are covered with an orange aril (a specialized outgrowth that partly or completely covers the seed). The wood is used for hut building and walking sticks. The bark can be used medicinally for stomach ailments.

The amazing strings of the silky bark

Zaniel in the nursery with her favourite tree

Maytenus acuminate occurs from the Zambezi River to the Western Cape. It is wide spread in the our conservancy with many young trees in our nursery. The name acuminate refers to the tapering point of the leaves. You can plant this tree in full sunlight or light shade. If you want to plant this tree from seed, collect the seeds when the capsules when they are splitting and revealing the orange fruit. You can remove the soft aril by washing the fruit in clean water. The remaining seed is small and should, preferably, be sown when fresh and during the warm summer months when the plant is in active growth. You can use well rotten compost to ensure good growth. The species can also be propagated from cuttings but take the cutting in the spring.

​"This is my favourite tree as it’s a beautiful garden plant and has lovely, reddish brown bark." says Zaniel. "When I came for my interview at the gvb office, this was the first tree that Oom Twakkie (Goliath Highburg) showed me. It caught my attention. I was fascinated by the elastic threads on the broken leaf and I now instantly know what tree it is. Crazy interesting." ​

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​http://pza.sanbi.org/maytenus-acuminata-var-acuminata-silky-showers
Van Wyk, B., 2013. Field guide to trees of southern Africa. Penguin Random House South Africa.