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Photo: Hectonichus · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source ↗
Natal mahogany
Rooiessenhout · Trichilia emetica
A big shady evergreen of the riverbanks, staying green when much around it is bare. Its dense dark crown and glossy leaves make it a landmark along watercourses.
Log your Natal mahogany sighting — free →How to identify it
A large evergreen tree with a dense, dark, shady spreading crown, usually along rivers. The glossy dark green compound leaves and rounded shape stand out as a solid block of deep green.
Flowers & fruit
Sweetly scented creamy-green flowers from about August to November, with capsules in summer.
Browsed by
Leaves are browsed by game such as elephant, kudu and nyala; sunbirds visit the flowers; and baboons, monkeys, antelope and parrots eat the red-arilled seeds.
Where to see it in Kruger
Riverine forest and fringes along the larger rivers and streams.
Did you know
Its capsules split to reveal black seeds wrapped in a bright red aril, and the wood is one of the most important timbers for the rural carving industry in southern Africa.
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