Forest Gardenia

Gardenia thunbergia is a sturdy large shrub or small tree endemic to the southern and eastern regions of South Africa and neighbouring territories such as Eswatini. It grows largely in forest or on forest margins. Its common names include forest gardenia, mutarara in Shona, tree gardenia, white gardenia and wild gardenia; in Afrikaans it is buffelsbol, stompdoring or wildekatjiepiering. The abundant, extremely fragrant flowers are about 70 millimetres across, with long tubes that only the proboscises of night-flying hawkmoths can reach. The fruit is oval, hard and woody, and may stay on the tree for years. The article says it is considered a means of repelling witchcraft in Karanga traditional medicine, and that members of the Johane Masowe Apostolic Church carve crosses from the mutarara, which they believe protect them against evil spirits.