Brachylaena discolor
Encyclopedia
Brachylaena discolor is a species of tree in the Asteraceae
family. Two varieties are known; var. discolor is commonly known as the Coast Silver Oak or Coastal Silver Oak, and var. transvaalensis is commonly known as the Forest Silver Oak or Natal Silver Oak. These trees are distributed from the Eastern Cape
to Mpumalanga
in South Africa
and into southern Mosambique, but are most common in the coastal vegetation of KwaZulu-Natal
.
Var. transvaalensis: A medium to tall tree up to 30m in height. The stem is tall, bare and generally straight. Usually found in forest.
Asteraceae
The Asteraceae or Compositae , is an exceedingly large and widespread family of vascular plants. The group has more than 22,750 currently accepted species, spread across 1620 genera and 12 subfamilies...
family. Two varieties are known; var. discolor is commonly known as the Coast Silver Oak or Coastal Silver Oak, and var. transvaalensis is commonly known as the Forest Silver Oak or Natal Silver Oak. These trees are distributed from the Eastern Cape
Eastern Cape
The Eastern Cape is a province of South Africa. Its capital is Bhisho, but its two largest cities are Port Elizabeth and East London. It was formed in 1994 out of the "independent" Xhosa homelands of Transkei and Ciskei, together with the eastern portion of the Cape Province...
to Mpumalanga
Mpumalanga
Mpumalanga , is a province of South Africa. The name means east or literally "the place where the sun rises" in Swazi, Xhosa, Ndebele and Zulu. Mpumalanga lies in eastern South Africa, north of KwaZulu-Natal and bordering Swaziland and Mozambique. It constitutes 6.5% of South Africa's land area...
in South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
and into southern Mosambique, but are most common in the coastal vegetation of KwaZulu-Natal
KwaZulu-Natal
KwaZulu-Natal is a province of South Africa. Prior to 1994, the territory now known as KwaZulu-Natal was made up of the province of Natal and the homeland of KwaZulu....
.
Taxonomy
Brachylaena discolor var. transvaalensis has previously been classified as Brachylaena uniflora and Brachylaena discolor subsp. transvaalensis.Description
Var. discolor: A shrub or small tree up to 10m in height. Usually developing a multi-stem or branching low down. Found growing mostly near the coast, especially in coastal dune vegetation.Var. transvaalensis: A medium to tall tree up to 30m in height. The stem is tall, bare and generally straight. Usually found in forest.