Puzzle Bush

Afrikaans name: Deurmekaarbos

Photo © Steven Herbert

Ehretia rigida

The branches of this small tree tend to droop and criss-cross which gives rise to its common name of Puzzle Bush.

The Puzzle Bush can reach a height of 9 metres but it can be little more than a shrub.

It is found mostly in the eastern half of South Africa as well as in Lesotho, Swaziland and Botswana.

In Spring the Puzzle Bush gets mauve, white or blue flowers which appear in clusters.

The fruit is round and red or orange in colour. It turns black when ripe. Various animals eat the fruit.

Photo © Steven Herbert

References and further reading

Wild About Johannesburg - Author: Duncan Butchart - Published: 1995 - Page: 100

Trees and Shrubs of the Witwatersrand - Author: Tree Society of SA - Published: 1974 - Page: 20

Trees of Southern Africa - 3rd edition - Author: Keith Coates Palgrave - Published: 2002 - Page: 974

What s that Tree? - Author: Eugene Moll - Published: 2011 - Page: 159

The Complete Field Guide to Trees of Natal, Zululand and Transkei - Author: Elsa Pooley - Published: 1994 - Page: 440

The Sandton Field Guide - Author: Sandton Nature Conservation Society - Published: 1982 - Page: 207

Trees & Shrubs of the Witwatersrand, Magaliesberg & Pilanesberg - Author: Joan van Gogh - Published: 1988 - Page: 96

SA Wild Flower Guide No 6 - Karoo - Author: David Shearing & Katryn van Heerden - Published: 1997 - Page: 122

Sappi Tree Spotting: Highveld and the Drakensburg - Author: Val Thomas and Rina Grant - Published: 1998 - Page: 272

Sappi Wild Flower Guide - Mpumalanga and Northern Province - Author: Jo Onderstall - Published: 1996 - Page: 170

Indigenous Garden Plants of Southern Africa - Author: Glenice Ebedes - Published: 2017 - Page: 76

Photographic Guide to Trees of Southern Africa - Author: B, P, and B-E van Wyk - Published: 2000 - Page: 125

Plants of the Baviaanskloof - Author: D Euston-Brown & M Kruger - Published: 2023 - Page: 301

Healing Trees & Plants of the Lowveld - Author: Dumes, Loon and Bester - Published: 2009 - Page: 31

Gardening with Indigenous Shrubs - Author: David and Sally Johnson, Geoff Nichols - Published: 2002 - Page: 49

Garden Birds in South Africa - Author: Duncan Butchart - Published: 2017 - Page: 169

A Field Guide to the Eastern Cape Coast - Author: R. Lubke, F. Gess & M. Bruton - Published: 1988 - Page: 219

A Field Guide to the Trees of Southern Africa - 1st edition - Author: E. Palmer - Published: 1977 - Page: 280

Field Guide To The Wild Flowers Of The Witwatersrand & Pretoria Region - Author: Braam van Wyk & Sasa Malan - Published: 1988 - Page: 252

Eastern Cape Veld Flowers - 2nd edition - Author: Eily Gledhill - Published: 1981 - Page: 200

A Field Guide to the Trees of Southern Africa - Revised - Author: E. Palmer - Published: 1983 - Page: 307

For more info: SANBI

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