Shrubs or trees up to 5 m high. Branches spreading, usually ending in spines. Leaves fascicled; lamina usually oblanceolate, rarely elliptic to linear, truncate, emarginate or acute, mucronate, 0.6-3.5 cm long, 0.1-1.2 cm broad, coriaceous, discolorous or not, often with reticulate venation on the undersurface; petiole 1-3 mm long, glabrous or hairy. Sclereids in the mesophyll differentiated into foot, stalk and sometimes a branched apex, reaching into the centre of the leaf, single, similar on both sides or much shorter or absent on the abaxial side of the leaves. Inflorescence axillary, racemose or fascicled, pedunculate or sessile; pedicel 0.3-2 cm long, hairy or glabrous. Bracts setaceous, entire or trifid, rarely split to the base, glabrous or hairy. Sepals 4, elliptic, 2-3 mm long, hairy or glabrous at least within. Corona a fleshy ring, denticulate. Stamens 6-15; filaments 2-3 mm long, glabrous. Gynophore 1-2 mm long, glabrous or hairy. Ovary ovoid with (4-)8-16 ovules; style c. 0.5 mm long; stigma usually capitate. Berry spherical, 0.5-1 cm in diameter, tomentose, usually with one, rarely 2 seeds with colliculate surface.
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An untidy shrub. It can grow 5 m tall. It has many stems from the base. The stems are smooth and grey. The branches are thickly set with small hard leaves. The leaves grow in tufts on short knobs. The leaves are about 8 mm long. They are oval and taper to the base. The twigs and branches can have spines at their tips. The flowers are small and green, They have a horrid smell. The fruit are round and hairy and the size of a cherry. They are light brown when ripe. There are 1-3 seeds inside. They have a sweet oily pulp. They are edible. There are some subspecies.
Shrub to small tree, up to 5 m tall, with pale grey bark, stems unpleasantly scented when cut. Leaves oblanceolate to linear, 6-35 x 1-12 mm, leathery, green to grey-green on both surfaces (in NW). Flowers small, greenish, unpleasantly scented. Fruit a spherical berry, ± 10 mm diam., velvety, yellowish. Flowering (Aug.) Sept.-Oct.(-Apr.)
A tropical plant. It grows in arid areas and on sand dunes. It grows in areas with a rainfall of about 50 mm. It grows between 50-1,400 m above sea level. It can grow in desert places. It is drought tolerant. It can grow in arid places. It is often on termite mounds.
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