Drypetes reticulata Pax

A shrub or slender, sometimes ill-formed tree up to 15 m. tall.. Bark ± smooth, yellowish grey, flaking.. Twigs pale greyish-brown or whitish.. Young shoots and petioles very sparingly puberulous to subglabrous or quite glabrous.. Petioles (2–)4–8 mm. long; leaf-blade obovate, broadly ovate, elliptic-ovate or elliptic-lanceolate, 4–10(–12) cm. long, 1.5–5(–8.5) cm. wide, acutely, subacutely or obtusely shortly acuminate, or else obtuse or rounded at apex, ± symmetrically cuneate or rounded at base, quite entire, coriaceous, shiny above, lateral nerves 4–6 pairs, somewhat irregularly looped within the margin, tertiary nerves strongly reticulate, those nearest the midrib not generally perpendicular to it and parallel, fairly prominent above and beneath, quite glabrous above and beneath, dark green, drying greyish or blackish-green.. Stipules oblong-linear, 1–1.5 mm. long, sparingly yellowish-puberulous, very soon falling.. Flowers axillary, the males glomerulate-fasciculate in clusters of up to 20 or more, the females usually solitary.. Male flowers: very similar in all respects to those of D. gerrardii.. Female flowers not seen.. Young fruits densely fulvous pubescent; styles 2, 1.5 mm. long, reflexed; stigmas obdeltoid, somewhat bifid at the apex; mature fruits subglobose, shallowly bilobed, 0.7–0.9 cm. long, 0.9–1.2 cm. diameter, smooth, sparingly pubescent, reddish brown; styles persistent.. Ripe seeds not seen.. Fig. 15.

Woodland on granitic outcrops; evergreen forest and thicket; often riverine; evergreen rain-forest; Brachystegia glaucescens woodland on rocky hillsides; at elevations from sea level up to 1,800 metres.

Can be grown by seedlings.