Diospyros kirkii Hiern

Usually small deciduous or semideciduous tree 3-8(-12 or more?) m. tall, with often twisted bole and rounded crown; bark black or dark grey, rough and deeply fissured with “ expanded metal appearance”; slash yellow-pink; young branchlets leaves and inflorescences pinkish lanate or densely brown velvety tomentose.. Leaves drying pale reddish brown or pale green, oblong-elliptic to broadly elliptic, 4-19 cm. long, 2.1-12.8 cm. wide, rounded at both ends, ± coriaceous, at first densely hairy but less so with age, and ± glabrous above, although even in very old leaves some persistent pubescence is present; lateral nerves 6-8 pairs, prominent beneath, tertiary nerves and veins forming a close reticulation, slightly raised above, strongly raised beneath and very prominent in old large leaves; petiole thick, 0.7-1.3 cm. long.. Male flowers in 3-or more-flowered cymules borne towards the base of the current year’ s growth in the axils of deciduous reduced leaves or the first-formed foliage leaves; peduncles 0.5-1.5 cm. long; pedicels ± 1 mm. long; calyx 4-7 mm. long, densely spreading brown hairy; calyx-lobes 4-5(-6), triangular, 3-5 mm. long, acuminate with rounded tip and revolute margins; corolla brown outside, greenish inside, urceolate, 1 cm. long, glabrous inside and thickened at the throat, velutinous-tomentose outside; corolla-tube 8 mm. long; corolla-lobes 4-5, ovate-apiculate, 2 mm. long; stamens 14-16, 5-6 mm. long, included; filaments very short, inserted on the receptacle; anthers linear-lanceolate, apiculate, glabrous; rudimentary ovary minute, tomentose.. Female flowers similar to male but solitary or in pairs and much larger; calyx 0.8-1 cm. long; calyx-lobes triangular, up to 9 mm. long, 5.5 mm. wide, densely brown hairy, revolute; staminodes ± 8, filiform; ovary 6 mm. long, 4 mm. wide with 4 locules; style not clearly differentiated; stigma large, fleshy, sessile, 3-4-lobed.. Fruit greenish yellow to golden-yellow or orange, globose or ellipsoid-globose, 2-4 cm. diameter, at first densely adpressed sericeous velvety but eventually glabrous and shiny, slightly verruculose; calyx with flat persistent lobes usually not undulate save in old specimens.. Seeds 2-4, reddish brown, narrowly oblong, 1-2 cm. long, 5 mm. wide; endosperm ruminate.. Fig. 3/25.

A tropical plant. It occurs in open woodland and on rocky and stony ridges. It needs a sunny position. It grows between 400-1,250 m above sea level. It grows in areas with a rainfall between 500-1270 mm per year. It is best with temperatures between 16°-27°C. It can grow in arid places.

The ripe fruit are eaten raw.

Trees can be grow from seeds but they do not germinate easily. Plants can be grown from large cuttings and also from root suckers.