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Wild Syringa
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Burkea africana hence not a syringa (Melia azedarach) which is a noxious invasive tree in South Africa.
Wilde Sering (Afrikaans): Monoto (seSotho): Mkenge (Shangaan). These trees are the hosts to a species of caterpillar which, roasted and dried, are relished by Africans who call it mukarati which means 'the tree with caterpillars'. An extract from the bark and the pods has been used for tanning and, in Zimbabwe, the Zezuru people chew the bark and apply it as a poultice to septic sores.
A medium sized tree 8 to 10 m in heigh. Abundant in the sand veld, to which it is strictly confined. In certain localities the older trees frequently have trunks hollow in the centre, whilst in others one finds many old trees with their trunks perfectly sound.
One of the most valuable indigenous South African timber trees for furniture, wagon-wood, and general purposes, of which good long, straight logs can be obtained. Shorter lengths are used for small pieces of furniture and Parquet flooring blocks.
Three varieties have been recognised, not readily distinguishable in the wild:
Red Sering. Bark grey, deeply cut into oval or roundish scales. Wood deep mahogany red, with very thin sapwood, is medium hard, and not attacked by borers. It is softer, less heavy, straighter in the grain, and splits more easily than Yellow Sering. Takes a fine polish, works well, and makes beautiful furniture. Shorter lengths of timber limit its use to smaller pieces of furniture and parquet blocks for flooring.
Yellow Sering. Bark rough, darker in colour, not so deeply cut into scales as that of Red Sering, and the tree usually has a flatter crown. The wood is yellow when sawn and takes a light mahogany finish. It is of medium weight, extremely hard and tough, and so cross-grained that it cannot be split with an axe and cannot be planed, requiring to be finished with a scraper. It, too, makes beautiful furniture, but is more difficult to work than Red Sering. For wagon naves and felloes it is excellent and is most valuable for any purpose where strength, combined with non-liability to split or crack, is required. The wood is liable to be attacked by borers whilst green.
White Sering. A smaller tree than either of the other two varieties. The red and yellow varieties are generally recognized as being very distinct, but the white variety appears to be very little known.
(Extracted and edited from Galpin 1925:12 and Palgrave 1977:166).
Galpin, EE. 1925. The Native timbers of the Springbok Flats. Botanical Survey of South Africa memoir no. 7. Pretoria: Department of Agriculture, Division of Botany.
Palgrave, KC. 1983. Trees of Southern Africa 1st Ed, 3rd Rev. Impression. Cape Town: Struik.