Edible: Flowers, leaves and fruit

Description: Shrub or small tree, between 2-6m tall (dioecious)

Native to: Subtropical Africa

Use: The flowers, leaves and fruit are edible. The fruit tastes like creamy, vanilla-infused apples with custard richness. Custard apples are high in dietary fibre, vitamin C and B vitamins. They also have calcium, iron, magnesium, protein, potassium and phosphorous. Flowers are added to spice or garnish meals, leaves are eaten as vegetables, or grazed by livestock.

Ecology: Host plant of the swordtail butterflies. 

Growing: Position in light shade. Ligh frost resistant and drought tolerant. 

Edible: Fruit

Description: Shrub 4m

Native to: Tropical and Southern Africa.

Use: The fruit can be eaten out of hand or made into pies, jams, jellies, and sauces.

Growing: Drought-resistant, Cold-tolerant, young plants needs protection.

Toxicity: The fruit of the Natal plum shrub is the only edible part of the plant. A relative of the poisonous Oleander, the stems and leaves of the Natal plum are toxic and should never be consumed.

Edible: Fruit & seeds

Description: Shrub/small tree 5 m tall (dioecious)

Native to: Central and southern Africa, except the winter-rainfall

Use: The fruit has a pleasant sweetish taste, with jelly-like flesh when ripe. Fruits can be used to make beer, and its seeds can be used as a coffee substitute.

Ecology: Host plant of the zigzag emperor moth. 

Edible: Fruit

Description: Tree 6-9m tall

Native to: Southern Africa.

Use: The ripe fruits are tasty, reminiscent of a small apple. They can be eaten fresh or sprinkled with sugar to complement their natural acidity. Aside from being eaten fresh, the fruit can be made into jam, used in desserts, or pickled.

Growing: Drought tolerant, frost hardy −6°C, tolerates saline soils

Hedge: Suitable as an impenetrable hedge.

Edible: Fruit

Native to: Southern Africa

Use: The berries, which are yellowish-brown and slightly lobed, are sweet and edible, but have little flesh and so are typically collected in large quantities to be eaten raw, dried or fermented into alcoholic beverages.

Edible: Fruit

Description: Dovyalis zeyheri is a small to medium-sized evergreen tree growing from 2 - 13 m. The stem can be single- or multi-stemmed. At certain times of the year, the leaves emit a smell resembling that of carrion and therefore best not to be planted too close to homes.

Native to: Southern Africa

Use: The fruit is edible, it is sour but refreshing and makes a good jelly.

Ecology: Birds such as barbets, louries, hornbills, and mousebirds relish the fruit. The thorns which protect birds' nests, make this an excellent wildlife garden tree. The caterpillars of the African Leopard Butterfly (Phalanta phalantha) feed on the leaves.

Growing: Tolerant of moderate frost, drought resistant. Can be grown from seeds.

Edible: Fruit (Leaves toxic)

Description: Bushy shrub 4m tall

Native to: Afrotropical realm 

Use: The small fruit is sweet & eaten by people, animals & birds when ripe. 

Ecology: Host plant of the Charaxes butterflies. 

Growing: Drought and light frost tolerant

Hedge: Can be used for creating a hedge or barrier.

Toxicity: The plant contains various alkaloids which are toxic.

Edible: Fruit and seeds

Description: A shrub or small tree, sometimes adopting a climbing or scrambling habit, usually growing from 1 -7.5 metres tall with some specimens to 12 metres.

Native to: Tropical southern Africa - southern DR Congo, Tanzania, Angola, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Botswana, Zambia, Zimbabwe, S. Africa.

Use: Fruit can be eaten raw or cooked. They can be cooked to make an acid jelly, stewed, or fermented to make wine. The fruit can also be stored by drying it in the sun, and then soaking it in warm water before eating it. The flesh around the seeds has a sweetly acidic and mildly peppery flavour.

Growing: best grown from seed when the fruit is ripe. The seed germinates better if it is abraded before sowing.

Edible: Fruit

Description:  Tree15 m tall (dioecious)

Native to: West, central and Southern Africa

Use: Fruits have a tart flavour and can be made into jam.

Growing: Ability to withstand drought and soil compaction. Frost sensitive. An excellent shade tree because of its thick canopy and also a good street tree and park tree.

Edible: Fruit

Description: A shrub or small tree with horizontal branches and a rounded quite dense crown; it can grow from 2 - 10 metres tall

Native to: Africa - Senegal to Sudan, south to S. Africa, but absent in the moister parts of the continent.

Use: Fruit can be eaten raw or cooked. The fruit has a juicy white pulp. The cluster of oval scarlet to orange fruitlets, each about 5 cm long, are borne in a single flower.

Ecology: The host plant of the small white-lady swordtail butterfly (Graphium morania) and Large striped swordtail butterfly (Graphium antheus).

Growing: Best grown from seed.

Edible: Fruit High in Vitamin C

Description: Evergreen tree, 15m tall. Some enormous specimens are to be seen amongst the Zimbabwe Ruins.

Native to: Subtropical Southern Africa

Use: The Red Milkwood fruit is sweet and high in vitamin C and is ready to harvest when it loses the sticky latex present in the skin. Fruit can also be stored after sun drying. 

Ecology: Host plant of the Nymph & Commodore butterflies.

Toxicity: Fresh sawdust may cause sneezing.

Edible: Seed pods

Description: Evergreen tree 5-22m tall

Native to: Tropics & subtropical Africa

Use: Pods are picked green, seeds are then steamed inside the pods before being eaten. 

Ecology: Nectar drips from bright red flowers attracting sun-birds. Host tree for Large Blue Charaxes butterflies.

Growing: Drought resistant

Edible: Fruit (seeds are toxic)

Description: Small to medium sized tree

Native to: Subtropical Africa

Use: The fruit is edible and often sun dried as a food preserve.

African names: Mahlala, Morutdha, Vizimbili, Vizimbili, Mkhwakhwa, Masala, Marutla, Matamba, Sala, Akasongole, Amahlala, Magwagwa, eMahlala, and Maramba. 

Growing: Sensitive to frost

Toxicity: The seeds must be avoided as they are toxic. 

Edible: Fruit

Description: A sprawling or scrambling shrub or climber, or a small tree, that is 1-2 m tall, but can reach up to 4 m high.

Native to: tropical Southern Africa

Use: Fruits are edible, with a tart flavour, and are eaten raw or used to make sauces, jellies and jams.

Ecology: Swallowtail butterflies breed on this species and some herbivorous insects may also feed on it. The fruits of this plant are eaten by birds and other wildlife, such as monkeys and other fruit-eating mammals.

Edible: Fruit

Description: Small tree 3-7m

Native to: Eastern and southern afrotropics

Use: Fruit has a pleasant apple-like flavor and can be consumed raw or the pulp may be dried and stored for later use, while the seeds may be roasted.

Growing: Drought resistant, can withstand moderate cold.

Edible: Fruit & nuts

Description:  A small tree or small shrub 2-6m tall

Native to: South & East Africa

Use: Fruits have a refreshing sour taste, best eaten when slightly over-ripe, but can also be used for making jam, dessert and jelly. It is high in vitamin C and potassium. They can be added to porridge. Oil from the seed is used to soften human skins and for softening animal hides. It is also used for lamps. The nuts are also eaten.

Ecology: The larvae of various butterflies including the Natal bar, Silvery bar, Bowker's sapphire,Saffron sapphire, Brown playboy and Bush scarlet butterfly feed on the leaves. 

Growing: Frost resistant and drought tolerant

Edible: Grain/seeds

Description: Grass up to 4m tall

Native to: Tropical and subtropical Africa

Use: Sorghum grains is dried then stored or milled into flour and used in porridge (such as ‘Maltabella’), unleavened bread, cookies, cakes, couscous and malted beverages. Eating the whole grain will ensure the most nutrition; soak in water overnight and boil as rice. The grains contain 60 – 75% carbohydrates, 8 – 13% protein and 4 – 6 % fat.

Growing: Drought-resistant. In times of drought, it rolls its leaves to lessen water loss by transpiration. If drought continues, it goes into dormancy rather than dying. Its leaves are protected by a waxy cuticle. It uses C4 carbon fixation thus using only a third of the amount of water that C3 plants require. 

Edible: Bean & leaves 

Description: Annual herbaceous legume

Native to: Afrotropical realm 

Use: Cowpeas or black-eye peas are very high in protein (24%) & low in fat. Leaves are high in protein & eaten as spinach. Green immature pods are boiled as a vegetable. Beans are also dried & stored for later use.

Growing: Tolerates sandy soil & drought

Youtube: Harvesting black-eye pea leaves

Edible: Leaves

Description: Spreading groundcover, 60cm tall

Native to: Most of Africa

Use: The leaves can be eaten as spinach and can be added to salads.

Ecology: It is also the host plant of many butterflies including the eyed pansy.

Growing: Drought-resistant. It prefers moist, well-drained soil and partial shade, although it can tolerate full sun in cooler climates. It is often used as a groundcover or in borders, and it can also be grown in containers. It is generally easy to care for and does not require a lot of maintenance. 

Youtube Video: Cooking asystasia