Carissa grandiflora - Natal plum, African jasmine (15 cm pot)

Beautiful shrub with a rounded shape with strongly ramified foliage, evergreen, with fleshy, waxy and shiny leaves, and branches equipped with robust thorns. In our climates it can grow up to 2-3 m in height, in South Africa it is used to create impenetrable hedges. From March to October it produces white star-shaped flowers, much appreciated by butterflies and bees. The scent is sweet and inebriating, followed by the production of fruits, small red-purple spheres, edible, with a sweet flavour, similar to small plums, which, according to popular opinion, are aphrodisiacs.

Pedoclimatic needs

Non-rustic species that fears the cold and intense and prolonged frosts, resisting up to 0/-1°C for short periods. It prefers sunny exposures sheltered from strong winds. Grow in fertile, well-drained soil with good organic matter content. Species that resist drought and are easy to grow and do not require much care. Cultivable outdoors in the citrus climate, on the shores of large lakes or along all the Italian coasts, resisting saltiness well. Also suitable for cultivation in pots.

Botanical Information

Botanical Name: Carissa macrocarpa grandiflora

Family: Apocynaceae