Oscar Pistorius's murder trial will be adjourned for two weeks after the Easter break and will resume on May 5 following a request by the prosecution.

The judge at the High Court in Pretoria granted the request after claiming that the trial was originally only meant to run for three weeks, but has so far stretched to seven.

Pistorius, who has finished giving evidence after seven days at the witness stand, is accused of murdering girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, whom he shot dead through a bathroom door at his home on February 14 last year.

Yesterday, Steenkamp's Valentine's Day card to Pistorius, which he did not open before the shooting, was shown to the court, with the message reading: "Roses are red, violets are blue... I think today is a good day to tell you that I love you."

The 27-year-old, whose version of events have been branded "improbable" by prosecutor Gerrie Nel, denies murder by maintaining that he mistook the South African model for an intruder when he fired four gunshots through the door.