Montinia caryophyllacea displaying its young fruit

The presence of Montinia caryophyllacea fruit indicate a female bush of this dioecious species. Tall over the vygies of the peaceful Namaqualand plain, the shrub is unlikely to be short of direct sunlight in its habitat, at least in these parts of it.

Sheep find this plant unpalatable; goats are less discriminating. Cleverer or at least naughtier than sheep, they are probably mindful of how far one has to sometimes walk before the next tasty leaf. They also are more robust and daring, doing more damage than sheep in arid veld of low carrying capacity (Manning, 2007; Le Roux, et al, 2005).