Ochna serrulata

Ochna serrulata, commonly known as the carnival redwood, in Afrikaans as the fynblaarrooihout (fine leaf redwood), is usually a shrub of 1 m to 3 m in height but also has tree status on account of its tallest specimens achieving 6 m in height (SA Tree List No. 479.1). 

The leaves are narrowly elliptic. They have many closely spaced parallel veins on their glossy green surfaces, and serrated margins.

The fragrant yellow flowers grow solitary on short spur-branchlets. They appear mainly in spring, to some extent throughout summer. The petals usually drop off early.

After the flowers the fruits, green drupelets, turn black as they ripen. They are prettily contrasted against the widely opened, persistent calyx lobes that turn red as in the photo. 

The species distribution is widespread in the south and east of South Africa, from the Western Cape along the south coast from George to the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal, as well as inland in Mpumalanga and Limpopo.

The habitat is forest margins, scrub forest, bushveld, grassland and fynbos. The habitat population is deemed of least concern early in the twenty first century.

The plant is well established as a garden ornamental, also overseas (Venter, 2012; Coates Palgrave, 2002; Pooley, 1993; iNaturalist; https://redlist.sanbi.org).