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Newtonia hildebrandtii
Also called Lowveld Newtonia
Lebombo wattle is a medium-sized tree of eastern African riverside and sand forests, valued for its timber and charcoal. It is a forest tree rather than a garden or houseplant, and it is protected in South Africa.
Newtonia hildebrandtii, the Lebombo wattle (Afrikaans: Lebombowattel, Zulu: Umfomothi), is a medium-sized tree native to eastern Africa. It is a protected tree in South Africa.
This tree is found in eastern Africa, its range extending from Kenya and Tanzania, through Malawi, Zimbabwe and Zambia, to Mozambique, Eswatini and KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa. Generally a tree of riverside forests, it also grows in sandy areas with a high water table, at altitudes of up to about 1,100 m (3,600 ft); these include the Southern African Sand Forest.
The timber of Newtonia hildebrandtii is used for building construction and for making poles and implements, and for carving. The wood burns well and makes good-quality charcoal. Products from the tree are also used in traditional medicine; an extract of the roots is used against worms, and an extract from the bark has been shown to have antimicrobial activity against a range of pathogens.
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Newtonia hildebrandtii by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
