botterboom, noun
- Forms:
- Formerly also boterboom.
- Plurals:
- botterbome /ˈbɔtə(r)bʊəme/, botterbooms.
- Origin:
- Afrikaans, South African DutchShow more Afrikaans (earlier South African Dutch boterboom), botter butter + boom tree; see quotation 1822. C.A. Smith reports that ‘children slide down hillsides on the stout slippery and buttery..stems’ (Common Names of S. Afr. Plants, 1966, p.170).
a. The deciduous succulent Tylecodon paniculatus of the Crassulaceae; butter-tree. b. Any of several similar trees.
1822 W.J. Burchell Trav. I. 192An arborescent species of Cotyledon was curious and remarkable. In growth, it resembled a small tree, having a disproportionately thick fleshy trunk. It was called the Boterboom (Butter-tree) probably from the soft fleshy nature of its trunk and branches.
1992 S. Afr. Garden & Home Dec. 100Another good container plant is the botterboom, Tylecodon paniculatus.
Any of several similar trees.
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