Tabernaemontana elegans 15 seeds "Toad tree"

Tabernaemontana elegans

15 seeds

"Toad tree"

Tabernaemontana elegans is a beautiful tree that has large, glossy leaves. Deciduous. Fragrant white flowers are followed by large fruit borne in pairs.

Apart from the yellow pulp being eaten on its own, the Zulu people add it to milk to speed up the curdling process. The seeds are also burnt, ground to a powder and mixed with tobacco for chewing or smoking. As a medicinal plant it has a variety of uses. The coagulated milky sap is used as a styptic, and root infusions are drunk as an aphrodisiac as well as a remedy for lung ailments and stomach ache. In addition, a maceration of the roots is taken twice daily to treat tuberculosis. Please note that parts of the plant, as administered by traditional healers in their concoctions, have been recorded as toxic.