
This small evergreen has so many benefits to your garden, there are reasons to plant these! The Portulacaria Afra is well known across South Africa. It goes by a few names like the elephant bush, dwarf jade, pork bush and better known as the spekboom. It is a succulent, indigenous to South Africa that can be grown as a bonsai, ground cover, used as a hedge and may even grow up to 4.5m to 5m.
There are a few varieties of the Portulacae family available to plant. These include diverse spekboom leaf sizes like the Limpopo variety which has a larger leaf size and even the Prostrata with smaller leaves which is used more as a ground cover.
Portulacaria Afra is indigenous to the Eastern Cape of South Africa. It is perfectly suited for hot summers and cold winters as it is so resilient and water wise. If you are looking for low maintenance, this is the perfect choice for you! They can live to 200 years and are so easy to propagate. All you need is a little cutting to start off the planting procedure.
These spekbooms are even great at soil binding so it is perfect to plant to prevent soil erosion. They respond really well to pruning and because they grow densely they are the ultimate choice to plant for hedging.
The leaves of the spekboom are edible too! They are not toxic to animals and the leaves have been used for years as a natural medicine. Crushed leaves have been used to provide relief for blisters, eating the leaves aid in treating heat exhaustion, dehydration and juiced leaves have even been used as an antiseptic to subdue skin ailments!
When the spekboom flowers it attracts insects like bees and butterfly larvae. It helps keep our ecosystem going by providing food for our local insects. The nectar from the flowers are nutrient rich and the leaves contain vitamin c. There are many recipes that can show you how to pickle and cook with these leaves.
The crowning moment for the spekboom is that it offsets deleterious carbon emissions. One hectare of spekboom thicket can absorb about 15.4 tonnes of carbon dioxide per year. The spekboom does this by absorbing the carbon dioxide and uses it to grow plant tissue and aid in creating oxygen. It’s not just a pretty sight, it cleans our air too!
With so many positive aspects to planting the indigenous Portulacaria Afra in your garden or keeping it as a houseplant it can definitely be considered as the go to! With this easy growing, low maintenance succulent planting it is ideal for anyone looking to add some indigenous vegetation to their home. When in doubt with what to plant, choose indigenous.
