Dombeya burgessiae

Dombeya burgessiae is a large multi-branched shrub, occasionally a small tree reaching heights around 5 m (SA Tree List No. 468.1). The bark is reddish brown, smooth with scattered warts.

The alternate leaves are large, ovate to round, about 11 cm in diameter. They are lobed with noticeable veins from the base. The apex tapers, the base is lobed, the margins serrated.

The flowers are uniformly pale pink or white. They are cup-shaped, growing in axillary clusters close to branch tips on long stalks. Blooms can be seen around autumn and the beginning of winter. The fruit is a small, hairy capsule, brown when ripe.

The species distribution is in the northeast of South Africa, KwaZulu-Natal, Mpumalanga and Limpopo; also in Zimbabwe and elsewhere in Africa.

The habitat is forest margins, rocky outcrops, river banks and woodland. The species is not considered to be threatened in its habitat early in the twenty first century (Schmidt, et al, 2002; Coates Palgrave, 2002; http://redlist.sanbi.org).