Tetragonia fruticosa leaves

Glistening surface cells of Tetragonia fruticosa respond spectacularly to sunlight in this photo. The leaves curve in towards their rounded tips while their margins curve downwards, presenting their shiny jewellery on elegantly shaped surfaces. Leaf tips have a little red on this stem.

The lance-shaped to elliptic leaves are sessile or nearly so; they are sometimes narrower, nearly linear. Some of the other T. fruticosa photos posted in this Album were taken at the coast. They show plants that have narrow leaves. These broader leaves were seen in the Little Karoo (iSpot; JSTOR).