Tamboti

The tree

Spirostachys africana is a medium-sized deciduous tree, about 10 metres tall, with a straight, clear trunk. It occurs in the warmer parts of Southern Africa. In South Africa it is found in the Lowveld, and it also grows in Swaziland. It prefers growing in single-species copses in deciduous woodland, often along watercourses or on brackish flats and sandy soils. The leaves are small and elliptic with crenate margins, and they turn bright red in winter before dropping. The grey-black rough bark is distinctively split into neat rectangles. The catkin-like flowers appear in early spring before the leaves, with male and female flowers borne separately on the same tree. The tree blooms in September. Its seeds, the size of peas, develop in three-lobed capsules that fall to the leaf litter when mature in November.

The wood

The timber is beautiful, dense and durable, reddish-brown with darker streaks and a satin-like lustre. The tree is prone to heart-rot. The heartwood is dark brown with darker vertical stripes. The wood is used mostly for carving, luxury furniture and curios. It is rare because of the tree's limited quantities and poisonous latex, so it is seen most frequently in small wooden objects and quality furniture.

Toxicity

The underbark exudes a white, poisonous latex when freshly cut. The latex is used as a fish poison and is applied to arrow-tips. Indigenous tribes also use it as a purgative. The latex can irritate the skin and eyes.

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