Common names
Hairy puzzlebush (English); lunsa (Bemba); machula-mamena-nchembele, mamena-nchembele (Kunda); chimyangu (Nyanja/Tumbuka).
General description and distinguishing characteristics
Ehretia obtusifolia is a shrub or small tree up to 3 m in height. Bark smooth, whitish, light brown or grey, occasionally flaky. Leaves simple, alternate, spirally arranged or on spur shoots, obovate to oblanceolate, up to 3 x 5 cm. Thinly textured, with glandular hairs on both surfaces, sometimes just on the veins and midrib, dark green above, paler below with prominent lateral an net veins. Margin entire, slightly wavy. Petiole 2-4 mm long. Flowers fragrant, corolla tube white, 5mm long, with mauve or blue corolla lobes about 4 mm long. Flowers produced in panicles at the end of spur branches (October-February). Fruit a spherical, orange, fleshy berry, 5-7 mm in diameter, covered with glandular hairs (November to February).
Range and habitat
Ehretia obtusifolia is found in eastern South Africa, Mozambique, Zimbabwe and northwards into Zambia. It is found at low altitudes on thin or stony soils or on termite mounds. In the Luangwa valley, it is occasional in the levees and sand deposits of the major rivers.