Common name: Wintersweet, Bushman's Poison
Acokanthera oblongifolia (Hochst.) Codd APNI* Description: Shrub or small tree to 6 m. Stems without spines.
Leaves elliptic, 6–12 cm long, 1.5—5 cm wide, glossy above, dull green below; base cuneate; apex acute to rounded.
Flowers 15—22 mm long; corolla white to pale pink.
Fruit a berry, ellipsoid or subglobose, 20—25 mm long, purplish black.
Distribution and occurrence: Cultivated as an ornamental, with a cultivar with variagated green and white leaves also available. Apparently naturalising near Nelson Bay, Port Stephens.
NSW subdivisions: *NC
All parts of the plant are poisonous.
Text by KL Wilson (June 2008) Updated by K.L. Gibbons Oct. 2019 from Spencer 2002. Taxon concept: Spencer, R. (2002) Horticultural flora of south-eastern Australia, vol 3. (University of New South Wales Press: Sydney)
APNI* Provides a link to the Australian Plant Name Index (hosted by the Australian National Botanic Gardens) for comprehensive bibliographic data ***The AVH map option provides a detailed interactive Australia wide distribution map drawn from collections held by all major Australian herbaria participating in the Australian Virtual Herbarium project.
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