Rapanea melanophloeos

Rapanea melanophloeos, commonly known as Cape beech, Kaapse boekenhout or isiCalabi, is a dense, graceful, evergreen tree that is native to the afromontane forests of Southern Africa. Outside forests they are also commonly encountered along stream banks and in gullies.

Description

Rapanea melanophloeos is a dense, graceful, evergreen tree. The leaves, stalks, and berries of this tree often have purple or maroon colors. It is often dioecious, with male and female flowers on different trees. Birds are attracted to its small, dark purple berries.
The specific name ‘melanophloeos’ means ‘black bark’ and resulted from a mistaken identification of the source tree as Swartbas (Diospyros whyteana).

Cultivation

Rapanea melanophloeos is cultivated as an ornamental tree and screening shrub in gardens, and as a potted bonsai specimen. It can withstand windy conditions and is able to grow near the coast. The plant can be established and is drought-tolerant. It requires very little maintenance.

It is important to avoid planting the plant next to paving as it will produce suckers from its roots, which eventually turn into new trees. Rapanea grows easily from seed.

Distribution

The natural range of this stately tree is from Cape Town in the south, to Zambia in the north. In the Eastern Cape it is sometimes found alongside its smaller coastal relative, Rapanea gilliana. Despite its common name it is not a close relative of the familiar Beech tree of the northern hemisphere, and it is actually more closely related to the Rhododendrons.