Wonderboom

The Wonderboom is an evergreen fig species that ranges from the KwaZulu-Natal midlands northwards to tropical East Africa. It grows especially on outcrops, rocky hillsides and along cliffs fringing water courses and may rarely grow up to 10 m tall and acquire a leafy spreading crown. The leaves are 7 to 10 cm long, carried on long petioles and are often noticeably folded along the midrib. The leaf sides are almost parallel and clear net-veining is visible on the lamina.

Leaves are brittle and have a characteristic smell when broken or bruised. The leaves are toxic and cause nervous disorders or even deaths in cattle. It is named after the Wonderboom grove in Pretoria, that has spread from a central bole that was carbon dated to about a 1,000 years old. The Wonderboom is an extraordinary specimen for its size and structure and its drooping branches are continuing to root and form new trees.