Kei Apple Dovyalis caffra
Kei Apple is a lovely evergreen fruit tree native to southern Africa.
It is attractive and drought and frost resistant. It can reach 8 m with a very full crown.
Creamy green flowers in summer.
Male flowers are 3 mm long in dense clusters of 5-10 flowers.
Female flowers are found in groups of up to three on stalks 4-10 mm long in leaf axils.
The fruits are ping pong ball size and are very like Apricot in colour.
It can be cultivated as a border, screen or used to form an impenetrable hedge.
It will grow well in either full sun or dappled shade and will also need regular trimming in order to maintain a good hedge.
The fruits are very edible and excess makes an excellent jam.
Initially brought to Australia by farmers, as hedge fencing, they can become a problem if left unattended as so often happens in the bush.
When necessary, the can be pruned back extremely hard and although you may loose a fruiting season, they do come back very well.
They have a formidable thorn that begins to show at a young age.
We have talked to farmers whose properties have had the same hedges for well over 100 years.
It also has a good growth rate of about 600 mm per year.
Tubestock Plant: $8.50
Unfortunately we cannot supply plants, rootlets or divisions to Western Australia, Tasmania or outside Australia.