Ziziphus mucronata
Ziziphus mucronata | ||||||||||||
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Leaves and fruits of Ziziphus mucronata , Magaliesberg , South Africa . |
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Systematics | ||||||||||||
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Scientific name | ||||||||||||
Ziziphus mucronata | ||||||||||||
Willd. |
Ziziphus mucronata is a plant from the family of the cross thorn plants (Rhamnaceae).
description
In Ziziphus mucronata is a spiny shrub of stature heights of up to 10 m reaches, with gray-brown bark. The thorns stand in twos in the leaf axils, one pointing straight up, one bent back down. The alternate leaves are stalked and simple. The leaf blade, green on both sides, is egg-shaped, round or heart-shaped at the base, asymmetrical and pointed and mucronate at the tip. The leaf nerve is palmatized at the base with three distinct main nerves.
10 to 20 flowers stand together in axillary inflorescences . The five-fold flowers have a diameter of about 3 to 4 mm. The five sepals and five petals are inconspicuous yellow-green. The rounded stone fruit turns red-brown when ripe.
distribution
Ziziphus mucronata occurs in tropical Africa and Asia in savannahs , in river vegetation or on termite mounds.
use
The wood is used for tools and kitchen utensils, but also as firewood or for making charcoal. Because of its thorns, Ziziphus mucronata is often planted as a hedge.
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c M. Arbonnier: Arbres, arbustes et lianes des zones sèches d'Afrique de l'Ouest , 2002, CIRAD, MNHN, ISBN 2-85653-546-1