Strychnos pungens Soler.

Loganiaceae, A. J. M. Leeuwenberg. Flora Zambesiaca 7:1. 1983

Morphology General Habit

Deciduous tree or shrub (0·30)2–8(16) m. high.

Morphology Trunk

Trunk 10–20 cm. in diam. or more.

Morphology General Bark

Bark grey or brown, rough, closely and shallowly reticulate–, not corky, smooth and grey higher up or in young trees; inner bark yellow; wood yellowish, with large bark–islets.

Morphology Branches

Branches pale to dark brown, conspicuously and densely lenticellate, not sulcate; branchlets glabrous or occasionally with few hairs.

Morphology Leaves

Leaves: petiole short, glabrous, 1–4 mm. long; lamina shining and dark green above, hardly or not paler and less shining beneath, coriaceous, rigid, elliptic, narrowly elliptic, obovate, or occasionally orbicular, (1)2–4(5) x as long as wide, (2)3–8(10) x 1–3·5(4·5) cm., acute or rounded and sharply pointed at the apex, cuneate or rounded at the base, glabrous on both sides or occasionally partly pubescent beneath; one pair of secondary veins from or from above the base curved along the margin and often a faint submarginal pair; tertiary venation reticulate.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences

Inflorescences axillary or ramiflorous, mostly several together, usually very short and about 0–25 x as long as the leaves, 1 x 1–2 x 2(4 x 5) cm., usually congested and subsessile, rarely lax.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Pedicel

Pedicels very short.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers

Flowers 5–merous.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx

Sepals green, nearly free, subequal, the inner slightly smaller, ovate, broadly ovate, or sometimes orbicular, 1–1·5 x as long as wide, 2·4 x 2·3 mm., acute, obtuse, or rounded at the mostly slightly keeled apex, conspicuously ciliate, glabrous on both sides or inside minutely appressed–pubescent at the base, without colleters.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla

Corolla in the mature bud 2·4–3·2 x as long as the calyx, 7–9·5 mm. long, greenish–creamy, or –yellow, glabrous outside, inside with a brush–like ring of white lanate hairs in the throat and just on the base of the lobes; tube cylindrical or nearly so, 1·4–2 x as long as the calyx, 1–1·7 x as long as the lobes, 4–5·5 mm. long, 1·5–3 mm. wide at the base, 2–3·5 mm. at the throat; lobes thick, narrowly triangular, 2–2·7 x as long as wide, 3–4 x 1·3–2 mm., acute, spreading.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium Stamens

Stamens slightly exserted; filaments 0·1–0·2 x as long as the anthers, inserted at the mouth of the corolla tube, glabrous; anthers oblong, 1–2 x 0·5–1 mm., glabrous.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Gynoecium Pistil

Pistil pilose in the middle, 5–7·5 mm. long; ovary ovoid or oblong, 1–3 x 0·7–2 mm., 2–celled, apically pilose, often with a disk–like base; style thick, 2·5–4·5 mm. long, at the base hairy like the ovary at the apex; stigma capitate.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Gynoecium Ovary Ovules

In each cell 25–60 ovules.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits

Fruit orange or yellow, nearly mature bluish–green, large, hard, globose, 5–12(15) cm. in diam., with about 20–100 seeds, with somewhat granular skin, slightly shining. Wall thick, (2)4–6 mm. thick, thicker above pedicel, woody when dry. Pulp sweet–tasting.

Morphology Reproductive morphology Seeds

Seeds ochraceous, flattened, more or less plano–convex, obliquely ovate, elliptic, or trullate, usually irregularly curved, 20–24 x 12–7 x 5–10 mm., with thick very short erect hairs, rather rough.