Botanical name |
Sclerocarya birrea (SA No 360) |
Other names |
Marula; maroela (Afrikaans), morula (Tswana) |
Family |
Anacardiaceae |
Dimensions |
Large upright tree, often 12 to 15 m with a broad and rounded crown, occasionally up to beyond 25 m |
Description of stem |
Grey, flaking characteristically in round patches, lower branches tend to disappear, showing a straight bare trunk; young branchlets end abruptly without attenuating |
Description of leaves |
Composite, clustered towards the end of branches, deciduous, imparipinnate (composite leaf has a terminal leaflet), 3 to 7 pairs of variable, elliptical and glabrous leaflets; green above, lighter below; usually only serrated when young, otherwise entire |
Description of flowers |
Dioecious, small yellow petals, male flowers in large clusters, female ones single or few together |
Description of seed/fruit |
Fleshy green drupe on tree, falling off in autumn and turning light yellow on the ground; three seeds contained in the hard kernel, the fleshy pulp highly nutritious and sought after by humans and animals |
Description of roots |
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Variation |
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Propagation and cultivation |
From seed or truncheons, water when young, full sun |
Tolerances |
Tender to frost, drought resistant once established |
Uses |
Fruits eaten by humans and many animals; made into a jelly and alcoholic drinks, even commercially, such as the Amarula liqueur; the seeds are also eaten; the wood is used for furniture, household utensils and flooring; the bark has been used as a dye and a medicine for dysentry; planted successfully as a crop plant in the Negev Desert; browsed by herbivores such as elephants and giraffes |
Ecological rarity | Not threatened |
Pests and diseases | |
Other | |
Location | Woodland and bushveld in warm areas |
Distribution (SA provinces) | North West; Gauteng; Limpopo; Mpumalanga; Kwazulu-Natal |
Country | South Africa; Botswana; Namibia; Zimbabwe; Swaziland; Mozambique; Zambia; Malawi |
Info | Palgrave |