Carissa macrocarpa flower

The flowers of Carissa macrocarpa are solitary or in few-flowered clusters at stem tips, or at the base of the spines.

The white flowers have corolla tubes that are up to 1,4 cm long and hairy inside. The five spreading, oblong corolla lobes overlap each other at the base in an anticlockwise pattern. The fragrant flowers are about 3,5 cm in diameter, the calyces behind are small. The flowers are bisexual. The stamens are enclosed inside the tube, the ovary two-chambered. Flowering happens from midwinter through spring.

The fruit, an ovoid berry, is red and fleshy when ripe, about 5 cm long and 3,5 cm wide. Each edible fruit contains vitamin C, phosphorus and magnesium. Fruits are present on the bush during spring and up to midsummer (Coates Palgrave, 2002; www.plantzafrica.com).