''Carpolobia goetzei'' (also known as ''Carpolobia goetzii''
) is a plant species in the milkwort family (
Polygalaceae). It is
endemic to forested areas, wooded steppes, and areas with
alluvial soil with altitudes below in Tropical East Africa between
South Sudan and
Mozambique, as well as northern
Madagascar.
It is a shrub or small tree which has an average height in the range between . It starts out
pubescent The adjective pubescent may describe:
* people or animals undergoing puberty
* plants that are hairy, covered in trichomes
* insects that are covered in setae
In biology, setae (singular seta ; from the Latin word for "bristle") are any of a ...
, before losing its hairs and becoming
glabrous.
[ The leaves the plant produces are mostly long and , though some forms exist with short leaves. They are ]petiolate
Petiole may refer to:
*Petiole (botany), the stalk of a leaf, attaching the blade to the stem
*Petiole (insect anatomy)
In entomology, petiole is the technical term for the narrow waist of some hymenopteran insects, especially ants, bees, a ...
with stems long.[ The leaves have been described as stiff and leathery and they end in a pointed tip.][ The flowers the plant produces are white, cream, or yellow and pinkish-brown after fertilization with purple, red, or bright pink honey guides on their tips. It contains 5 petals which are long. The flowers are sometimes scented.][
The plant produces a sweet, fleshy, edible fruit which is about across. It is eaten raw and collected between April and June. The fruit starts as lime green before turning yellow. When it is ripe, it is orange and very shiny. The fruits are not marketed commercially or cultivated by the local people but are well-liked by chimpanzees.][ It was first written about in 1900 in the ''Botanische Jahrbücher für Systematik, Pflanzengeschichte und Pflanzengeographie'' by Robert Gürke.]
References
{{taxonbar, from=Q15575394
Polygalaceae