Cussonia paniculata subsp. sinuata

Cussonia paniculata subsp. sinuata, the mountain cabbage tree or bergkiepersol in Afrikaans, is a well-known and much admired tree of mainly the eastern parts of South Africa (SA Tree List No. 563).

Its habitat is dry, rocky slopes in bushveld or grassland. A height of 5 m is rarely exceeded. The most impressive specimens have a straight main trunk with several curving branches, each ending in a flourish of dense blue-grey-green leaves.

Two subspecies, viz. subsp. sinuata and subsp. paniculata are on record. Subsp. paniculata has entire margined or slightly serrated leaflets and only grows in the southern parts of the distribution area in the southern Karoo and Eastern Cape. Subsp. sinuata with margins that are conspicuously lobed and wavy (sinuate), develops the well-branched crowns seen in the northern parts of the distribution area, particularly Gauteng (Coates Palgrave, 2002; Schmidt, et al, 2002).