it makes a pleasant shade tree and gives life to the garden by luring birds and insects such as butterflies, beetles and bees. In Botswana as well as most parts of South Africa, the residents believed the buffalo thorn to be immune against lightning, anyone standing under one in a storm would be safe. It is also believed that if it is felled in summer, a drought, hail or lightning will certainly follow.

Botanical Name:

Ziziphus mucronata

Did you know?

Ziziphus mucronata, or as it is more frequently known, the wag-‘n-bietjie tree is said to represent life as we know it. The young twigs are zigzag, indicating that life is not always straightforward. Two thorns at the nodes are also significant; one facing backward represents where we come from and one facing forward, represents where we are going.