Hyaenanche globosa fruit

The gifboom is dioecious, i.e. male and female flowers grow on separate trees. The greenish female flowers grow solitary or in groups of up to three from axillary clusters. Being female flowers they lack stamens, but are equipped with the required vital parts, the ovoid, hairy ovaries and three to five fused styles.

The fruits that follow are globose, segmented capsules of about 2,5 cm in diameter, usually with three to four lobes. In this picture the rough brown surface of the hard, ripe fruit appears on a short stalk, with a hint at the tip of separate lobes. Up to six shiny black seeds are produced per capsule in spring to midsummer.

The leaves of the female tree are said sometimes to be smaller, with more pointy tips than the rounding found on the leaves of the male tree (Coates Palgrave, 2002; www.plantzafrica.com).