Flueggea virosa is a dioecious (male and female flowers on separate plants), multistemmed, fast-growing, bushy shrub, 2-3 m but sometimes a spreading tree up to 4 m high, with some small, thorn-like branches. The bark is reddish brown to brown. The leaves are green, crowded along the branchlets. It bears very small flowers which are creamy green. Fruit are white and fleshy and appear in December-March. Flowering time: October-January. The slender branches are used to make fish traps. The small fruit is sweet and eaten by people, animals and birds when ripe. The roots and fruits are believed to be an effective snakebite remedy. Roots of this plant are also used in some African communities as contraceptives and for the treatment of syphilis, gonorrhoea, rheumatism, sterility, rashes. An infusion of the root is taken to relieve malaria. The bark is believed to provide a treatment for diarrhoea and pneumonia.