Olea capensis

Olea capensis
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
(unranked):	Angiosperms
(unranked):	Eudicots
(unranked):	Asterids
Order:	Lamiales
Family:	Oleaceae
Genus:	Olea
Species:	O. capensis
Binomial name
Olea capensis

Olea capensis, the Black Ironwood tree, is an African tree species belonging to the olive family (Oleaceae). Olea capensis is widespread in Africa. It is found almost throughout Africa south of the Sahara from the east in Somalia, Ethiopia and Sudan, south to the tip of South Africa, and west to Cameroon. Sierra Leone, and the Islands of the Gulf of Guinea. It occurs in bush, littoral scrub and evergreen forest.

Olea capensis is known by a variety of common names including:

• Afrikaans: ysterhout
• English: black ironwood, East African olive, Elgon olive, ironwood, ironwood olive
• Swahili: loliondo, mushargi
• Trade names: loliondo, mutharage, mutharagi, olive

Olea capensis macrocarpa, like all sub-species of Black Ironwood, can reach an enormous size in the wild.

Description

Olea capensis is a bushy shrub, or a small to medium sized tree, up to 10 metres (33 ft) in height, occasionally reaching 40 metres (130 ft).

• Bark: light grey, becoming dark grey and vertically fissured with age; a characteristic blackish gum is exuded from bark wounds.
• Leaves: light to dark green and glossy above and paler green below; petiole often purplish, 0.3-1.7 cm long; lanceolate-oblong to almost circular, 3-10 x 1.5-5 cm.
• Flowers: white or cream and sweetly scented, small and in many flowered axillary or terminal heads, 3-15 cm long.
• Fruit: when ripe they are somewhat succulent purplish drupes; ovoid up to 2 x 1 cm.

Detail of Olea capensis flowers.

Ironwood tree in flower. Cape Town.

Ironwood grown as a garden tree.

Subspecies

The species has been divided into 3 subspecies:

• Olea capensis ssp. macrocarpa: flowers in lax heads, fruits oblong to elliptic.
• Olea capensis ssp. capensis: flowers in dense heads, leaves very variable, apex often rounded, and fruits almost spherical to oblong elliptic.
• Olea capensis ssp. enervis: leaves usually broadly elliptic, apex tapering.

Uses

Food

Olea capensis has masses of sweetly-scented bisexual flowers, that produce large edible fruits.

Lumber

The wood of the tree is very hard, fine grained, and heavy, and although difficult to work, it is widely used for art and artifacts.

Gardens

Olea capensis is cultivated as an ornamental tree in parks and gardens.

References

• "Olea capensis". Ecocrop FAO. http://ecocrop.fao.org/ecocrop/srv/en/cropView?id=8059. Retrieved 2010-02-09. 
• "Olea capensis subsp. capensis". Aluka. http://www.aluka.org/action/showCompilationPage?doi=10.5555/AL.AP.COMPILATION.PLANT-NAME-SPECIES.OLEA.CAPENSIS. Retrieved 2010-02-09. 
• "Olea capensis subsp. capensis". Fernkloof Nature Reserve. http://fernkloof.com/species.mv?159. Retrieved 2010-02-09. 

External links

• AgroForestry Tree Database: Olea capensis