Cheiridopsis denticulata bearing fruit

The fruit of Cheiridopsis denticulata seen here will dry out over time and become hard. The capsule tapers below as above, rendering it a disc-shape, thickest in the centre or elliptic as seen from the side.

The lines radiating from the centre demarcate the twelve to twenty valves below which quantities of the plant’s seed are forming in separate compartments called locules. When the fruit is ripe the valves will open when they become wet from rain to release seeds. They close again when dry (Le Roux, et al, 2005; Smith, et al, 1998).