The way in which the small branches of Muraltia spinosa are spine-tipped, partly through desiccation, is shown here. Not much concerned with foliage in the blooming season, the smooth, grey-green branchlets appear like sharpened pencils.

Positioned at about right angles upon the larger stems, a few such branches and the plant will point a thorny tip in every direction from which a trouble-some mammal could approach (Vlok and Schutte-Vlok, 2010; Leistner, (Ed.), 2000).