Combretum psidioides Welw.

Tree up to 17 m. high or large bush; bark grey, deeply rectangularly fissured or fairly smooth; branchlets usually tomentose when young, with the bark peeling off in large dark grey or purple-black strips or cylindrical or hemicylindrical pieces, leaving a newly exposed cinnamon-red surface.. Leaves opposite; lamina coriaceous, elliptic or oblong-elliptic or ovate-elliptic or ovate-oblong, 5–15(–24) cm. long, 3–10(–16) cm. wide, apex usually rounded or retuse and often mucronate or apiculate, base rounded or subcordate, densely ferruginous tomentose when young (except in subsp. psilophyllum where the young leaves are markedly glutinous), eventually white pubescent to pilose or tomentose on the reticulation beneath and glabrous on the areoles (subsp. psidioides) or ferruginous pubescent along the sides of the midrib and laterals (subsp. psilophyllum) or glabrous except for the scales (subsp. glabrum); scales reddish, widely scattered, inconspicuous; lateral nerves 8–16 pairs, reticulation rather prominent beneath; petiole 3–10 mm. long.. Inflorescences of rather dense usually tomentose axillary spikes up to 10 cm. long usually appearing with the young leaves.. Flowers (fig. 3/17, p. 14) yellow.. Lower receptacle usually tomentose; upper receptacle broadly campanulate or cupuliform, 2.5 mm. long, 3.5 mm. in diameter, usually tomentose.. Sepals deltate.. Petals obcuneate, 1.1 mm. long, 0.6 mm. wide, ciliate at the apex.. Stamen-filaments 6 mm. long; anthers 1.1 mm. long.. Disk with pilose free margin 0.5–0.75 mm. wide.. Style 2–3 mm. long, slightly expanded at the apex.. Fruit (fig. 5/17, p. 16) subcircular or elliptic in outline, up to 3 cm. long, 3 cm. wide, usually crimson or pink, sometimes red-brown or tan, glutinous, nearly glabrous except for rather inconspicuous scales; apical peg absent; wings up to 13 mm. wide; stipe 2–10 mm. long.. Cotyledons 2, arising below soil-level; petioles 4–4.5 cm. long.. Scales (fig. 2/17, p. 13) glistening, whitish or yellowish or reddish, often obscured by the indumentum, ± 40–50(–70) μ in diameter, circular, with 8 primary radial walls only, cell walls very thin and obscured by glutinous secretions.

It is a tropical plant. It grows on sandy soils in shrub savanna. It grows in hot drier areas at medium altitudes. It grows in rainfall of 400 mm. It grows in deep, well-drained soils. It grows between 900-1,800 m above sea level. It can grow in arid places.

The powered bark is used as flavouring for cooked potherbs. It is also used to flavour marula wine. The damaged tree produces edible gum.

Can be grown by seedlings.