Of Cherry Trees and Kleinhuisies

I spotted this in my garden and verily I kneweth it was not good.

But what was it?

I asked the Palmiet Rangers, elite volunteer conservation defence force ably led by Field Marshall Geoffrey Poncenby-Carruthers GCMG.

The answer came swiftly:

CHERRY TREE! That immediately brought an important history lesson – well, myth actually – to mind. Didn’t Des Lindbergh warn us about this in the sixties? Have a listen:

~~oo0oo~~

In Suriname, which was a Dutch colony (our explorer Levaillant was born there) this cherry Eugenia uniflora is known as Monkimonki Kersie – or Monkey Cherry. Because the seeds are distributed by fruit-eating birds it can become a weed in suitable sub-tropical habitats – like ours – displacing native flora.

~~oo0oo~~

Here’s Des Lindbergh’s full song Die Kleinhuisie:

kleinhuisie – outhouse; longdrop; dunny; pit latrine; outdoor toilet; literally, ‘small house’