Herb: Bushman's Toilet Paper


Latin name: Brachyglottis repanda


Synonyms: Cineraria repanda, Senecio forsteri, Senecio georgii


Family: Compositae



Medicinal use of Bushman's Toilet Paper:

A gum obtained from the plant is chewed to sweeten the breath.

Description of the plant:



Plant:
Evergreen
Shrub

Height:
6 m
(20 feet)

Flowering:
April
to May

Scent:
Scented
Shrub

Habitat of the herb:

Coastal to montane forest and scrub.

Edible parts of Bushman's Toilet Paper:

A gum is obtained from the plant and is used for chewing. It should not be swallowed, however, and in light of the warning on toxicity at the top of the page, perhaps it should not even be chewed.

Other uses of the herb:

The plant has large sage-green leaves with a white, hairy underside. They are used as a substitute for toilet paper.

Propagation of Bushman's Toilet Paper:

Seed - we have no information on this species but the seed is probably best sown on the surface of a freely draining compost in the greenhouse as soon as it is ripe. Stored seed can be surface sown in the greenhouse in early spring. Do not allow the compost to dry out. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in the greenhouse for at least their first winter. Plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts. Cuttings of half-ripe wood, July/August in a frame. Cuttings of mature wood of the current season's growth, November in a frame. Very easy.

Cultivation of the herb:

Coastal to montane forest and scrub.

Known hazards of Brachyglottis repanda:

All parts of the plant are poisonous.

Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future.