Berkheya spinosa young leaves

These young green Berkheya spinosa leaves suggest the plant’s value as a palatable foodstuff for game and stock. The leaf surface is smooth, not yet leathery and appears appetising; the spines a small cause for due care when ingesting.

Leaf margins are raggedly irregular, variably lobed and bearing whitish spines of uneven size. The leaves are ovate to broadly elliptic or obovate. Leaf size is around 2,5 cm long and 1 cm wide (Vlok and Schutte-Vlok, 2015).