Brachylaena rotundata

Brachylaena rotundata, the mountain silver-oak and in Afrikaans the bergvaalbos (mountain grey bush), is a deciduous shrub or small tree reaching heights from 3 m to 8 m (SA Tree List No. 730). Brachylaena is a genus of shrubs and trees in the Asteraceae family, the sexes represented by separate trees, i.e. they are dioecious.

The flowerheads grow in spikes or slightly rounded clusters, often appearing before the leaves from axils and at stem-tips. The flowerheads are creamy white to pale yellow. Flowering happens late in winter and early in spring. The fruit is a small nutlet with a tuft of bristles at its tip.

The species is distributed across the provinces north of the Vaal River and in the north of the Free State; also in some neighbouring countries.

The habitat is open woodland and bushveld, often on rocky slopes or near termite mounds. The species is not considered to be threatened in its habitat early in the twenty first century.

The strong, tough wood is much used in tool and axe handles, also good for carving (Coates Palgrave, 2002; Schmidt, et al, 2002; Van Wyk and Van Wyk, 1997; http://redlist.sanbi.org).