The Anacardiaceae, commonly known as the cashew family or sumac family, are a family of flowering plants, including about 83 genera with about 860 known species. Members of the Anacardiaceae bear fruits that are drupes and in some cases produce urushiol, an irritant. The Anacardiaceae include numerous genera, several of which are economically important, notably cashew, mango, Chinese lacquer tree, yellow mombin, Peruvian pepper, poison ivy, poison oak, sumac, smoke tree, marula and cuachalalate. The genus Pistacia is now included, but was previously placed in its own family, the Pistaciaceae.
Searsia pendulina, commonly known as the white karee (English) or witkaree (Afrikaans), is a hardy, very fast growing, semi-deciduous tree. It is native to Namibia and to the Free State and Cape Provinces of South Africa. It occurs naturally along the Orange River and some of its tributaries.
Searsia lucida, previously known as Rhus lucida, and commonly known as the varnished kuni-rhus (English) or blinktaaibos (Afrikaans).
Searsia leptodictya is known as mountain karee in English, bergkaree in Afrikaans, and mohlwehlwe in Sotho. An evergreen tree reaching a height of 5 metres and a similar spread, it is drought resistant but only semi frost hardy. It is an attractive small tree with a rounded crown and a pleasing weeping effect. It can be planted in full sun or in partial shade. The tree bears small white flowers, which on female trees turn into bunches of small berry type fruit, which attract birds who feed on the berries. The tree is an attractive tree for a small garden. The berries can be brewed into a beer.
Searsia lancea commonly known as karee, is an evergreen, frost hardy, drought resistant tree, which can reach up to 8 metres in height with a 5-metre spread. It is one of the most common trees on the Highveld and in the Bushveld in South Africa, but not found in the Lowveld. In North America, where it is naturalized, it is known as African sumac and willow rhus.
Searsia crenata, previously known as Rhus crenata,, is a species of Searsia that is native to South Africa, where it grows in frost-free and light frost areas, especially on beach sand dunes.
Searsia pentheri, the common crowberry (English), gewone kraaibessie (Afrikaans), iNhlokoshiyane (Zulu), or mutasiri (Venda), is a species of tree in the genus Searsia. Frost hardy tree reaching a height of up to 6 metres. The tree is mainly evergreen but loses its leaves in severe winters. It has olive-green foliage with dark brown bark and can be grown in either full sun or semi shade. Small flowers are produced and are followed by masses of shiny, light brown, small edible fruits, which provide a feast for birds. Only female trees produce these fruits though. The tree occurs over large portions of South Africa. It has been planted in Spain.
Searsia gerrardii, the Drakensberg karee, is a deciduous, drought resistant tree, native to South Africa. It reaches a height of up to 5 metres. It is frost hardy and occurs naturally in mountain areas, often along riverbanks. The tree has a graceful drooping habit. It produces small yellowish flowers which, on female trees, turn into small fruits which are relished by birds. This tree makes a lovely shade tree for a small garden.
Passerina is a genus in the plant family Thymelaeaceae. They are ericoid bushes growing largely in fynbos and other Southern African scrub habitats.
Dombeya rotundifolia, the dikbas or "South African wild pear", is a small deciduous tree with dark grey to blackish deeply fissured bark, found in Southern Africa and northwards to central and eastern tropical Africa. Formerly placed in the Sterculiaceae, that artificial group has now been abandoned by most authors and the plants are part of an enlarged Malvaceae.
Protea eximia, the broad-leaved sugarbush, is a shrub from South Africa that may become a small tree. It occurs in mountain fynbos on mainly acidic sandy soils; the species was very well known under its old name of Protea latifolia. The flowers have awns that are covered in purple-black velvety hairs, and are contained within a series of rings of involucral bracts that have the appearance of petals. The fruit is a densely hairy nut, many of which are inserted on a woody base. The flowers are borne terminally on long shoots, and have a tendency to become very untidy as they age.
Celtis africana, the white stinkwood, is a deciduous tree in the family Cannabaceae. Its habit ranges from a tall tree in forest to a medium-sized tree in bushveld and open country, and a shrub on rocky soil. It occurs in Yemen and over large parts of Africa south of the Sahara. It is a common tree in the south and east of southern Africa, where the odour given off by freshly-cut green timber is similar to that of Ocotea bullata or black stinkwood.
Oncoba spinosa, the snuff-box tree, fried egg tree or fried-egg flower, is a plant species in the genus Oncoba.
Diospyros whyteana is a small African tree of the ebony family. Bearing dark green, strikingly glossy leaves and creamy fragrant flowers, it is increasingly cultivated in Southern African gardens as an attractive and strong ornamental tree. It can attain a height of up to 6 m.
Searsia laevigata, the dune currant rhus, is a small, bushy, evergreen tree that occurs in rocky fynbos slopes and coastal shrub in South Africa.
Searsia tomentosa, the real wild currant (English), umhlakoti (Zulu) or korentebos (Afrikaans), is a small, bushy, evergreen tree. It is native to South Africa, Lesotho, and Zimbabwe. It occurs in fynbos and coastal shrub in South Africa, where it is naturally most common in forest margins.
Searsia angustifolia, the willow karee or smalblaar, is a small, bushy, evergreen tree which is confined to the South Western Cape in South Africa.
Euclea crispa, commonly known as the blue guarri, is an Afrotropical plant species of the family Ebenaceae. The hardy and evergreen plants may form a dense stand of shrubs, or grow to tree size. It is widespread and common in the interior regions of southern Africa, and occurs northward to the tropics. Though some are present near the South African south and east coasts, they generally occur at middle to high altitudes. It is readily recognizable from its much-branched structure and dull bluish foliage colour. Those bearing lanceolate leaves may however resemble the Wild olive, another common species of the interior plateaus.
