''Moringa ovalifolia'' is a succulent flowering tree of the family

Moringaceae ''Moringa'' is the sole genus in the plant family Moringaceae. It contains 13 species from tropical and subtropical regions of Africa and Asia that range in size from tiny herbs to massive trees. ''Moringa'' species grow quickly in many types of ...

native to

Namibia Namibia (, ), officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa. Its western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Zambia and Angola to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and ea ...

and southwestern

Angola , national_anthem = " Angola Avante"() , image_map = , map_caption = , capital = Luanda , religion = , religion_year = 2020 , religion_ref = , coordina ...

. It is a succulent-stemmed tree found in

desert A desert is a barren area of landscape where little precipitation occurs and, consequently, living conditions are hostile for plant and animal life. The lack of vegetation exposes the unprotected surface of the ground to denudation. About on ...

and semi-desert areas. The plant grows vertically, and can reach in height. It is

deciduous In the fields of horticulture and Botany, the term ''deciduous'' () means "falling off at maturity" and "tending to fall off", in reference to trees and shrubs that seasonally shed leaves, usually in the autumn; to the shedding of petals, aft ...

and has a main branch up to 1 meter in diameter. German botanists

Kurt Dinter Moritz Kurt Dinter (10 June 1868 – 16 December 1945) was a German botanist and explorer in South West Africa. Education and career Dinter was born in Bautzen, where he attended the Realschule. Having completed his military service and joi ...

and Alwin Berger described the species in 1914. ''Moringa ovalifolia'' has been classified in a section ''Donaldsoniana'' within the genus, however genetic analysis shows that this group is not a natural group (paraphyletic). ''Moringa ovalifolia'' occurs on rocky escarpment passes leading to the

Namib Desert The Namib ( ; pt, Namibe) is a coastal desert in Southern Africa. The name is of Khoekhoegowab origin and means "vast place". According to the broadest definition, the Namib stretches for more than along the Atlantic coasts of Angola, Namib ...

. This species is the dominant component of the woodland known as the

Fairy Tale Forest The Fairytale Forest (''Sprookjesbos'' in Dutch) is a wooded section of the amusement park Efteling in the Netherlands, where a number of well-known fairy tales and fairy tale figures are depicted by animatronics and buildings. Most of the figure ...

Etosha National Park Etosha National Park is a national park in northwestern Namibia and one of the largest national parks in Africa. It was proclaimed a game reserve in March 1907 in Ordinance 88 by the Governor of German South West Africa, Friedrich von Lindequist. ...

Gallery

Moringa ovalifolia - Sprokiesboom-1149 - Flickr - Ragnhild & Neil Crawford.jpg File:Moringa ovalifolia - Sprokiesboom-1144 - Flickr - Ragnhild & Neil Crawford.jpg Moringa ovalifolia10.jpg Moringa ovalifolia15.jpg

References

ovalifolia Endemic flora of Angola Endemic flora of Namibia Trees of Africa Drought-tolerant trees Plants described in 1914 Taxa named by Alwin Berger Taxa named by Kurt Dinter {{Brassicales-stub