Ochna serrulata was first described by the German naturalist Christian Ferdinand Friedrich Hochstetter, and given its current binomial name by Wilhelm Gerhard Walpers.

It occurs throughout the country, from Cape Town in the south, along the east coast as far as Kwazulu-Natal, and inland through Eswatini and Gauteng.

This tough, adaptable shrub grows in sunny, open positions as well as in the shade of deep forest.

[7] Ochna serrulata is a weed in parts of eastern Australia with a potential to spread from its current range.

[8] In New Zealand it is listed on the National Pest Plant Accord prohibiting its sale, commercial propagation and distribution.