Tapinanthus oleifolius
(J. C. Wendl.) Danser
Bird-lime, Lighted candles
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(c) Kevin Murray, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by Kevin Murray
Description
A shrub that grows on other plants. It can grow 1.5 m high. Young stems are hairy. The leaves are arranged irregularly. The leaves vary but can be 3-5 cm long by 1-2 cm wide. Flowers occur in single groups of 3-4 flowers. The fruit are oval berries. They are reddish-orange.
Edible Uses
The stems are dried, pounded, and cooked with sugar and milk to make a drink. The leaves can be used for tea, nectar is sucked fresh from the flowers, and the fruits are eaten raw either fresh or dried, especially by children.
Traditional Uses
The stems are dried, pounded and cooked. Then sugar and milk is added to make a drink. The leaves are also used. The nectar is sucked from the flowers. The fruit are eaten raw either fresh or dried.
Distribution
It is a subtropical plant. It grows in hot arid places with a marked dry season. The dry season can be 6-11 months. It grows between 70-1,950 m above sea level. It can grow in arid places.
Where It Grows
Africa, Botswana, East Africa, Eswatini, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Southern Africa, Swaziland, Zambia, Zimbabwe,
Cultivation
Plants can be grown from seeds. Seeds need light to germinate.
Other Information
The fruit are eaten especially by children.
Synonyms
Also Known As
Haires, Haitsuib, Maias, Oilunda, Pagamela
References (4)
- Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (1999). Survey of Economic Plants for Arid and Semi-Arid Lands (SEPASAL) database. Published on the Internet; http://www.rbgkew.org.uk/ceb/sepasal/internet [Accessed 3rd May 2011]
- Ruiters-Welcome, A. K., 2019, Food plants of southern Africa. Ph.D. thesis. Univ. of Johannesburg p 74
- Welcome, A. K. & Van Wyk, B.-E., 2019, An inventory and analysis of the food plants of southern Africa. South African Journal of Botany 122 (2019) 136–179
- World Checklist of Useful Plant Species 2020. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
