Lycium oxycarpum old and young flowers

Lycium oxycarpum bears ovoid orange-red fruit. They are said to be seldom seen, due to the rate at which birds eat them. The photo was in time to capture one, at this stage still yellow-orange.

The slender corolla tubes are about 2 cm long, cream to whitish in colour. Short, rounded, mauve lobes spread around the mouth. Greenish yellow stamens and style are present in the flower centre, only reaching the mouth. The photo was taken in August, the middle of the plants late winter to early spring bloomtime.

The leaves are fascicled or spirally arranged on the stems and spur branchlets. They show a hint of succulence, are deep green to yellowish green, hairless and narrowly oblanceolate with entire margins.

There are spines among the leaves, not too obvious when foliage is lush, but very capable of making their presence felt (Coates Palgrave, 2002; Wikipedia).