Diospyros ramulosa, the tkoenoebe

Diospyros ramulosa bears flowers of different sexes on separate plants, consistent with Diospyros genus characteristics. So, don’t scold the one offering no fruit. It may be a male.

The tasty fruits are present on the shrub from late winter to the following autumn. From two to eight oblong dull-brown seeds are produced in each berry.

These plants are common on the hills south of Springbok. This one was seen in the Goegap Nature Reserve, not far away (Mannheimer and Curtis, (Eds.), 2009; Le Roux, et al, 2005; Coates Palgrave, 2002; iNaturalist).