Myrsine africana, the Cape myrtle, is a suffrutex, a shrub or rarely a small tree (SA Tree List No. 577.1).

The attractive leaves are small, lanceolate, elliptic or nearly round. They are leathery, hairless and glossy green. The leaf midrib is prominent on the lower surface. The leaf margins are entire in the lower half of the leaf, finely toothed towards the tip.

The fruits visible in the picture are globular, 0,4 cm in diameter (Coates Palgrave, 2002).