Scientific name
Common name
Family
Origin
South Africa
Year planted
1997
Flowering
Spring
Description
It is a large tree, up to 18 metres high. The leaves are evergreen, but if it is very cold, they may fall off. They grow in groups of 3, are long and needle-shaped.
The flowers are long, up to 2 metres, and hang from the tree. The petals are dark red and can be up to 10 centimetres long. They are very fragrant and open at night so that nocturnal insects such as moths or other animals such as bats can pollinate them.
However, the most characteristic feature is their fruit: they are large berries up to 1 metre long, grey-brown in colour. They also hang from the tree, look like large sausages and can weigh up to 9 kilograms.
Marimurtra’s specimens
You can find a magnificent specimen of about 9 metres high at the side skirting at the entrance to the Garden. It was planted in 1997 from seeds from the Vienna Botanical Garden (Austria).
It first flowered in spring 2014 and bore fruit in 2015. This is the first time that a tree of this species has been recorded as producing fruit in Europe. When the temperature drops below 4 degrees, its leaves fall off.
Did you know that…?
The fruits of this tree are toxic to humans, but many animals eat them: elephants, monkeys, giraffes, hippopotamuses…
Threat level (UICN)
Main uses
Raunkiaer Life Forms
