Metalasia muricata (L.) D.Don, commonly known as 'White Bristle Bush' or 'Blombos', is a hardy virgate or twiggy shrub with honey-scented flowers usually 2-4 m tall, woody with a rounded crown, and an important component of the coastal and mountain fynbos regions of Southern Africa. It is encountered in a number of forms in its extended distribution, some of which are tolerant of frost, wind and poor sandy soils. A member of the Asteraceae or Daisy family, Metalasia has some 54 species in South Africa, many of them found in the Western Cape. The name of the genus Metalasia is derived from 'meta' which can have many meanings, but in this case is intended as 'reverse', and 'lasios' meaning 'woolly', an allusion to the woolly reverse sides of the leaves; 'muricata' means warty with short, sha