Portulacaria afra

Common name: spekboom

Family: Portulacaceae
Origin: South Africa

Plant description: evergreen succulent shrub that can reach 2 - 3 m in height. It has small round succulent leaves.  Late winter to spring small pink star-shaped flowers are borne. 
Use:  in  rockeries, water-wise garden, bonsai and pots. It thrives indoors and outdoors. The leaves are edible, can be added to a salad they have a sour flavour.
Light and position: it tolerates full sun and semi-shade.
Water requirements: low watering, avoid overwatering as it does not like wet feet.
Special care: sufficient sunlight, does not need a lot of attention. It needs a warm bright spot to thrive.
Pest and disease: mealybugs and scale insects.

Propagation: stem cutting at any time of the year.

Flowering water-wise shrubs

If you are in the process of adding new shrubs to your garden. Here are a few recommendations:

Propagation Metalasia muricata

In nature seeds germinate in response to various conditions in the natural environment. Some seeds require that you treat them in a particular way to assist them germinate. When growing seeds think about the conditions that the seed would experience  in nature, try and imitate those conditions. 

Some fynbos seeds germinate after contact with smoke from a veld fire.

Metalasia muricata

Scientific name: Metalasia muricata

Family: ASTERACEAE

Common name: Blombos

Plant Description 

Blombos is a tough, hardy shrub with honey-scented flowers. A well-branched rounded shrub that grows up to 3 m, sometimes in a small tree. It has narrow needle-like grey-green leaves that are hairless or covered in woolly white hairs. The sweet-smelling white, pink, red or purple flowers borne in winter. 

Metalasia is derived from the Greek meta meaning backwards or reverse.  Lasios refers to the woolly undersides of the leaves. Muricata is taken from the word murex, meaning roughened, and with hard points like the shell of a mollusc.

Growing and maintenance of Metalasia muricata

M. muricata is widespread in Western Cape from the coast to the mountains. It is not particular about soil type and grows well in the Cape Flats. It is hardy and fasting-growing, plant in coastal and water-wise gardens. It is also windy and drought resistant. Blombos is a dream plant, a must-have in any garden. Water moderately and prune back after flowering to keep it tidy. Flowers invite a diversity of insects, such as honeybees and the Painted Lady butterfly. Sunbirds and honeybees are attracted to the nectar produced by the flowers.

Sow seeds in autumn:

• Collect seeds during in summer when they are ripe.
• Sow seeds in March/ April.
• Place seeds in a seedling tray with a well-drained medium such as sand or river sand well-decomposed pine bark and sow 1 cm deep.
• Cover seeds lightly with soil and keep moist.
• Seeds must be placed in a room with enough light until germination takes place. 
• Metalasia germinates well if exposed to the smoke treatment.
• Seeds usually germinate within six to eight weeks.

Propagate from cuttings:

• Take cuttings in the cool hours of the day.
• Take 20-30 mm long heel or stem cuttings from semi-hardwood, from healthy plants.
• Remove the leaves from the lower third of the cutting.
• Dip cuttings into a rooting hormone and place into a tray filled with 50% milled pine bark and 50% perlite.
• Place the trays in a propagation unit with overhead mist and bottom heating.
• Once the cuttings are rooted, pot them up in 1-litre plastic bags. 
• Young cuttings must be watered well and kept under shade for about three to four weeks until hardened off, which after, they should be grown in full sunlight.

References

Goldblatt, P & Manning J.C. 2000. Cape plants: A Conspectus of the Cape Flora of South Africa. National Botanical Institute. Cape Town and Missouri Botanical Garden.

Hitchcock, A. 2015. Metalasia aurea. PlantZAfrica.com. Online http://pza.sanbi.org/metalasia-aurea.

Joffe, P. 2003. Easy Guide to Indigenous Shrubs. Briza Publications, Pretoria.

Manning, J. 2007. Field Guide to Fynbos, Random House Struik (Pty) Ltd, Cape Town 

Xaba, P.A. 2004. Metalasia muricata. PlantZAfrica.com. Online. http://pza.sanbi.org/metalasia-muricata.

Candice, 2021. Coast Metalasia  Online. https://candidegardening.com/ZA/plants/eaabf98455d9bdfef9c454fdb2d22a2f