Cunonia is a genus

Genus

In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...

 of flowering plants, which includes several species of evergreen trees and shrubs. Some authors merge Weinmannia

Weinmannia

Weinmannia is a genus of flowering plants in the family Cunoniaceae. The genus includes approximately 150 species of canopy trees and shrubs, ranging across the montane tropics and temperate New Zealand and Chile....

into Cunonia.

The genus has a disjunct distribution

Disjunct distribution

In biology, a taxon with a disjunct distribution is one that has two or more groups that are related but widely separated from each other geographically...

, with 25-30 species native to New Caledonia

New Caledonia

New Caledonia is a special collectivity of France located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, east of Australia and about from Metropolitan France. The archipelago, part of the Melanesia subregion, includes the main island of Grande Terre, the Loyalty Islands, the Belep archipelago, the Isle of...

 in the Pacific, and one lone species (Cunonia capensis

Cunonia capensis

Cunonia capensis is a small tree, found in the afromontane forests of Southern Africa, and along rivers....

) in Southern Africa

Southern Africa

Southern Africa is the southernmost region of the African continent, variably defined by geography or geopolitics. Within the region are numerous territories, including the Republic of South Africa ; nowadays, the simpler term South Africa is generally reserved for the country in English.-UN...

.

Cunonia capensis

Cunonia capensis

Cunonia capensis is a small tree, found in the afromontane forests of Southern Africa, and along rivers....

, commonly known as the African red alder or Butterspoon Tree, is a small tree found along watercourses and in the afromontane

Afromontane

Afromontane is a term used to describe the Afrotropic subregion and its plant and animal species common to the mountains of Africa and the southern Arabian Peninsula...

 forests of Southern Africa, ranging from the Western Cape

Western Cape

The Western Cape is a province in the south west of South Africa. The capital is Cape Town. Prior to 1994, the region that now forms the Western Cape was part of the much larger Cape Province...

 of South Africa

South Africa

The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...

 eastwards to Swaziland

Swaziland

Swaziland, officially the Kingdom of Swaziland , and sometimes called Ngwane or Swatini, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa, bordered to the north, south and west by South Africa, and to the east by Mozambique...

 and southern Mozambique

Mozambique

Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique , is a country in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west and Swaziland and South Africa to the southwest...

. It is grown as an ornamental in gardens for its attractive glossy foliage and its clusters of small, scented, white flowers.

The large stipule

Stipule

In botany, stipule is a term coined by Linnaeus which refers to outgrowths borne on either side of the base of a leafstalk...

s which enclose the growth tip are pressed together to form a spoon-like shape, giving the tree its common name of "Butterspoon Tree".