Ziziphus mucronata subsp. mucronata branchlets

Ziziphus mucronata subsp. mucronata upper stems may also be grey and have fewer spines on old trees. While a few straight and curved spines are discernible in the photo, large trees don’t require their thorny weaponry as much as saplings do. In some areas old trees are completely thornless (better than spineless).

These spine-free trees may bear bigger fruit. The energy and resources going into growing spines are better spent on more fruit?

The lottery of evolution is based on long term, big sample statistics of many generations; the survival fortunes of the growth forms that life generates.

It allows a brainless tree to appear so clever in its adaptation. The overall system produces results that appear very clever, the components mere pawns (Pooley, 1993; Van Wyk and Van Wyk, 1997).