DOMBEYA TILIACEA SEEDS - LITTLE DOG ROSE - INDIGENOUS IN SOUTH AFRICA

Dombeya is a flowering plant genus of around 250 species. Traditionally included in the family Sterculiaceae, it is included in the expanded Malvaceae in the APG and most subsequent systematics. These plants are known by a number of vernacular names which sometimes, misleadingly, allude to the superficial similarity of flowering Dombeya to pears or hydrangeas, which are unrelated. They grow chiefly throughout Africa and Madagascar. The generic name Dombeya is in honour of Joseph Dombey, a French botanist and traveller in Peru and Chile (1742-1793).           Dombeya tiliacea commonly known as Little Dog Rose, Cape Wedding Bells Tree and Forest Wild Pear is a South African endemic species with pure white flowers which are carried in large, round clusters on this shrub. It is found in the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal provinces of South Africa. It can tolerate drought, poor soil conditions and light frost. This deciduous shrub or small tree reaches up to 4 meters tall. It has small heart-shaped leaves and clusters of white flowers during late summer. It also makes an outstanding bonsai subject.