Hyaenanche globosa leaves

The leaves of the gifboom, Hyaenanche globosa, are simple, growing in whorls of four on the young stems; old stems lower down are mainly leafless. The old leaf is dark green and sometimes slightly shiny; paler when young. The leaf surface is hairless once the young leaves lose their finely haired initial coatings. The leaf texture is rigid and leathery, the margins entire. Leaf shape is narrowly elliptic to lanceolate with a prominent, creamy white midrib.

The widely spaced, ascending lateral leaf veins are parallel and faint, but still visible in the photo, as is a little of the net-veining. Leaf tips are smoothly rounded here, said to be sometimes notched. The leaf tapers towards its base into a short, sturdy, cream coloured to pale yellow petiole.

The leaves and stems of this plant lack latex (Coates Palgrave, 2002; www.plantzafrica.com).