Podocarpus latifolius (Thunb.) R.Br. ex Mirb.

Tree up to 33 m high with straight clean bole up to 3 m in diameter or stunted tree or shrub no more than 2 m high. Bark dark grey to khaki-coloured, smooth in young trees, later longitudinally fissured and exfoliating in long strips. Branchlets slightly angular, marked with grooves from decurrent leaf bases. Terminal buds 2-3.5 mm in diameter; outer bud scales narrowly triangular, acuminate, upper half sometimes recurved, 4-6 mm long and about 1.5 mm wide. Leaves spirally arranged to subopposite, often crowded in upper parts of shoots, spreading, dark green to glaucous and shiny above; adult leaves straight to very slightly falcate, linear-elliptic, more or less parallel-sided in middle portion, rather abruptly contracted in upper 1/4 or 1/5, apiculate to subobtuse, (2-)3.5-6(-10) cm long and (0.5-)0.6-0.8(-1.3) cm wide; juvenile leaves up to 17 cm long and up to 17 times longer than broad; midrib raised on lower surface, on upper surface slightly raised in lower 2/3; margins slightly reflexed; stomata confined to lower surface (very rarely a few present on upper surface), arranged in 20-35 ± distinct longitudinal rows on either side of midrib. Male cones solitary, rarely in groups of 2, sessile or subsessile, (0.8-)1-2(-3) cm long, elongating to 3 cm or more after shedding pollen, (2.5-)3-4.5(-6) mm in diameter, pinkish; outer sterile scales at base narrowly to very narrowly triangular, often distinctly keeled, subentire to denticulate, 3-4 mm long and about 1.5-2 mm wide; terminal lobe of fertile scale broadly triangular to widely ovate, about 0-6 mm long and 0.6-0.7 mm wide, lacerate; pollen sacs about 1-3 mm long and 0.6-0.7 mm in diameter. Female cones solitary, on naked stalks (1.5-)5-10(-19) mm long and about 1 mm in diameter; receptacle fleshy, glaucous green, turning pink to reddish-purple when ripe, sweet-tasting and semi-transparent, 8-14 mm long and 8-14 mm wide, with 1, less commonly 2 fertile scales, 1 or sometimes 2 seeds maturing on each receptacle. Seed obovoid to subglobose, often slightly apiculate, glaucous to slate-coloured, sometimes turning dark violet, 7-11 mm long; shell 0.5-1.2 mm thick, consisting of 3 layers: the outermost thin and leathery, the middle one varies in thickness, is slightly woody, often contains cavities filled with resin, the inner thin and pergamentaceous.

A tropical plant. In South Africa it grows from sea level up to 1800 m altitude. It grows in mountain forests. They can withstand frost. It suits hardiness zones 10-11. Arboretum Tasmania. Mt Lofty Botanical Gardens.

The fleshy receptacle near the seeds is eaten fresh from ripe fruit. The leaves are used for flavouring and as a preservative.

Seed should be sown when fresh. It is best to pick seed off the trees when ripe and plant them in a nursery. Seeds once they have dried out only germinate slowly.