About Rhoicissus tomentosa (Lam.) Wild & R.B.Drumm.
Rhoicissus tomentosa, commonly called the Cape grape, is a vigorous evergreen vine native to the afro-montane forests of southern Africa. It is growing in popularity as an ornamental garden creeper, and has a wide variety of uses in traditional medicine. The Cape grape occurs across wetter regions of southern Africa. Its range stretches from forests on the eastern slopes of Table Mountain, east through the coastal afro-temperate forests of South Africa, which include the Cape Provinces, KwaZulu-Natal, and the Northern Provinces, and continues northward to Zimbabwe and Malawi. This is an attractive, easy-to-grow garden creeper. Its uniform, multi-coloured evergreen foliage makes it a good native alternative to ivy for African gardens. It can grow successfully in both full sun and shade, and can even be grown indoors. It works well as a groundcover for shady areas. It can be planted to climb walls like ivy, though it needs some type of trellis for its tendrils to grip onto. It readily climbs over fences to create a screen or hedge, and can even be used to make wire-basket topiaries. It grows easily from seed, though cuttings can also be rooted successfully.
