Commiphora africana (A.Rich.) Endl.

Shrubs or small trees up to 10 m. tall; trunk straight, cylindrical, often beset, from near the base, with short stiff horizontal spiny branches; outer bark peeling in glossy reddish brown or grey scrolls; both long-and short-shoots usually spine-tipped; very young twigs markedly pubescent, later glabrescent; slash granular, mottled red; exudate slightly scented, producing a hard gum-resin.. Leaves all 3-foliolate, pubescent, at least on the petioles and lower surface of the veins; petiole of leaves on long-shoots shorter than the central leaflet, sometimes only 3–5 mm. long, of leaves on short-shoots up to 22 mm. long, often as long as the leaflets or longer; terminal leaflet obovate, rhombic or elliptic, less often lanceolate, attenuate basally, truncate, rounded or acute apically, varying greatly in size, 10–100 mm. long, 10–60 mm. wide, with numerous well-marked irregularly crenate serrations; lateral leaflets orbicular-elliptic-ovate, sometimes greatly reduced less than 1/10 the size of the terminal leaflet and only 2–3 mm. in diameter, sometimes up to half as large as the central leaflet, always definitely toothed.. Flowers precocious, red, crowded in short cymes on pedicels 0–2 mm. long, each enclosed at the base by a pair of ovate bracts about 1 mm. long.. Receptacle cupular, ± 1.2 mm. wide, 0.7 mm. deep.. Calyx 2.5–3.5 mm. long, its tube much longer than the lobes.. Petals glabrous, linear, widened and reflexed towards the tip, 5–7 mm. long; filaments 3.5 and 2 mm., anthers 0.8 and 0.4 mm. long.. Fruit-stalk 0.2 mm. long; drupe asymmetrically ellipsoid-obovoid, rounded but apiculate at the tip, varying greatly in size from 6–14 mm. long, 5–10 mm. wide, 5–10 mm. thick; pseudaril (in Flora area) nearly always completely covering the putamen except for a small area at the tip where it is irregularly 4-toothed, rarely this divided upper portion may be up to 1/3 of the whole; stone strongly rugose, the sterile locule definitely and rather broadly ridged throughout its length; germination shield about half as long as the fertile locule, rather obscure among the corrugations of the stone’s surface; apical pits well defined but small in var. africana sometimes very large in var. oblongifoliolata .

A tropical plant. It favours low dry woodland. It grows on sandy flats or rocky ridges. In East Africa it grows between 50 and 1,800 m altitude. In Kenya it grows in regions with a rainfall between 400-1,000 m altitude. It can grow in arid places. It grows in the Sahel. It grows in Miombo woodland. In Brisbane Botanical Gardens.

The centre of the roots is eaten when food is scarce. It is eaten raw. It is sweet. Bark is used to make a tea. The young fruit is eaten raw. Caution: The leaves are eaten but may contain poisons. They are cooked with potash and groundnuts.

It can be grown from seeds or cuttings. It can be grown from stakes. It can be planted as a live hedge.