PlantPeers
Back to Catalog
Grewia occidentalis
Malvaceae FAMILY Least Concern

Grewia occidentalis

Grewia occidentalis

Edibility
2/5
Medicinal
2/5

Safety & Hazards

None known

Cultivation Details

HabitDeciduous Shrub
Growth—

Succeeds in tropical and subtropical climates. Plants can tolerate at least some frost[1]. Succeeds in most soil types in full sun or in shade[2, 1]. Established plants are drought tolerant[1]. The root system is not aggressive and can therefore be planted near buildings and paving[1]. This species is a 'must-have' species in the garden to attract butterflies and birds[1].

Propagation

Seed - studies have shown that seed which has passed through the gut of monkeys and baboons germinates better than those collected from a tree[1]. This is due to the fact that the seeds chemical inhibitors have been broken down by the animal's stomach acids[1]. However germination is generally fairly good even from seed that has not passed through a gut[1]. Cite as: Tropical Plants Database, Ken Fern. tropical.theferns.info. 2026-02-20. <tropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php?id=Grewia+occidentalis>

Pollinators

Data unavailable

References

  1. [1]PlantZAfrica.com — http://www.plantzafrica.com ↩︎An excellent site giving detailed descriptions and uses of many S. African plants.
  2. [2]The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. — Huxley. A. · MacMillan Press · 1992 · ISBN 0-333-47494-5 ↩︎Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
  3. [3]Flora Zambesiaca — http://apps.kew.org/efloras/fz/intro.html ↩︎An excellent online flora of plants from the Zambezi River basin. It lists a number of the plant uses as well as the habitats and botanical descriptions of the plants.
  4. [4]IUCN Red List of Threatened Species — http://www.iucnredlist.org/ ↩︎A list of plants under threat and facing possible extinction, usually with brief details of the threats and information on habitat.
  5. [5]Cornucopia II — Facciola. S. · Kampong Publications, California. · 1998 · ISBN 0-9628087-2-5 ↩︎The second edition of an excellent guide to the edible uses of plants, though it does not give any details of cultivation etc.
  6. [6]Swaziland's Flora - siSwati Names and Uses — Chris Long · 2005 · http://www.sntc.org.sz/flora/chrislong.asp ↩︎A basic, but very long, list of names and uses.
  7. [7]Dictionary of Economic Plants. — Uphof. J. C. Th. · Weinheim · 1959 · ISBN - ↩︎An excellent and very comprehensive guide but it only gives very short descriptions of the uses without any details of how to utilize the plants. Not for the casual reader.