Cola (plant)

Cola (plant)
Cola is a genus of trees native to the tropical forests of Africa, classified in the family Malvaceae, subfamily Sterculioideae (previously in the separate family Sterculiaceae). Species in this genus are sometimes referred to as kola tree or kola nut for the caffeine-containing fruit produced by the trees that is often used as a flavoring ingredient in beverages. The genus was thought to be closely related to the South American genus Theobroma, or cocoa, but the latter is now placed in a different subfamily. They are evergreen trees, growing up to 20 m tall (about 60 feet), with glossy ovoid leaves up to 30 cm long and star-shaped fruit.
Origin and distribution
Cola is a genus of the Family Malvaceae with approximately 100 to 125 species occurring in the evergreen lowland and montane forest of continental (primarily tropical) Africa. The earliest known evidence of Cola is Cola amharaensis, a well-preserved fossil leaf compression from the late Oligocene Guang River flora of Ethiopia and dated to 27.23 ± 0.1 Ma. Kola nuts are seeds harvested from pods, primarily from the species Cola nitida and Cola acuminata. Outside mainland Africa, some species are cultivated for their nuts in Brazil, Jamaica and elsewhere in the humid tropics.
Species
Cola acuminata (P.Beauv.) Schott & Endl.
Cola alba A.Chev.
Cola altissima Engl.
Cola angustifolia K.Schum.
Cola anomala K.Schum.
Cola argentea Mast.
Cola attiensis Aubrév. & Pellegr.
Cola ballayi Cornu ex Heckel
Cola bilenguensis Pellegr.
Cola bipindensis Engl.
Cola bodardii Pellegr.
Cola boxiana Brenan & Keay
Cola brevipes K.Schum.
Cola bruneelii De Wild.
Cola buesgenii Engl.
Cola buntingii Baker f.
Cola cabindensis Exell
Cola caricifolia (G.Don) K.Schum.
Cola cauliflora Mast.
Cola cecidiifolia Cheek
Cola chlamydantha K.Schum.
Cola chlorantha F.White
Cola clavata Mast.
Cola coccinea Engl. & K.Krause
Cola congolana De Wild. & T.Durand
Cola cordifolia (Cav.) R.Br.
Cola crispiflora K.Schum.
Cola digitata Mast.
Cola discoglypremnophylla Brenan & A.P.D.Jones
Cola diversifolia De Wild. & T.Durand
Cola duparquetiana Baill.
Cola edeensis Engl. & K.Krause
Cola elegans Pierre ex Breteler
Cola fibrillosa Engl. & K.Krause
Cola ficifolia Mast.
Cola flaviflora Engl. & K.Krause
Cola flavovelutina K.Schum.
Cola gabonensis Mast.
Cola gigantea A.Chev.
Cola gigas Baker f.
Cola gilgiana Engl.
Cola gilletii De Wild.
Cola glabra Brenan & Keay
Cola glaucoviridis Pellegr.
Cola greenwayi Brenan
Cola griseiflora De Wild.
Cola heterophylla (P.Beauv.) Schott & Endl.
Cola hispida Brenan & Keay
Cola hypochrysea K.Schum.
Cola idoumensis Pellegr.
Cola kimbozensis Cheek
Cola lasiantha Engl. & K.Krause
Cola lateritia K.Schum.
Cola laurifolia Mast.
Cola le-testui Pellegr.
Cola lepidota K.Schum.
Cola letouzeyana Nkongmeneck
Cola liberica Jongkind
Cola lissachensis Pellegr.
Cola lizae N.Hallé
Cola lomensis Engl. & K.Krause
Cola lorougnonis Aké Assi
Cola louisii Germ.
Cola lukei Cheek
Cola macrantha K.Schum.
Cola mahoundensis Pellegr.
Cola marsupium K.Schum.
Cola mayimbensis Pellegr.
Cola mayumbensis Exell
Cola megalophylla Brenan & Keay
Cola metallica Cheek
Cola millenii K.Schum.
Cola minor Brenan
Cola mixta A.Chev.
Cola mossambicensis Wild
Cola mosserayana Germ.
Cola nana Engl. & K.Krause
Cola natalensis Oliv.
Cola ndongensis Engl. & K.Krause
Cola nigerica Brenan & Keay
Cola nitida (Vent.) Schott & Endl.
Cola noldeae Exell & Mendonça
Cola obtusa Engl. & K.Krause
Cola octoloboides Brenan
Cola pachycarpa K.Schum.
Cola pallida A.Chev.
Cola philipi-jonesii Brenan & Keay
Cola pierlotii Germ.
Cola porphyrantha Brenan
Cola praeacuta Brenan & Keay
Cola pseudoclavata Cheek
Cola pulcherrima Engl.
Cola quentinii Cheek
Cola quintasii Engl.
Cola reticulata A.Chev.
Cola ricinifolia Engl. & K.Krause
Cola rondoensis Cheek
Cola rostrata K.Schum.
Cola ruawaensis Cheek
Cola rubra A.Chev.
Cola scheffleri K.Schum.
Cola sciaphila Louis ex Germ.
Cola selengana Germ.
Cola semecarpophylla K.Schum.
Cola simiarum Sprague ex Brenan & Keay
Cola sphaerocarpa A.Chev.
Cola sphaerosperma Heckel
Cola stelechantha Brenan
Cola subglaucescens Engl.
Cola suboppositifolia Cheek
Cola sulcata Engl.
Cola tessmannii Engl. & K.Krause
Cola triloba (R.Br.) K.Schum.
Cola tsandensis Pellegr.
Cola uloloma Brenan
Cola umbratilis Brenan & Keay
Cola urceolata K.Schum.
Cola usambarensis Engl.
Cola vandersmisseniana Germ.
Cola verticillata (Thonn.) Stapf ex A.Chev.
Cola welwitschii Exell & Mendonça ex R.Germ.
Cola winkleri Engl.
Gallery
References
Malvaceae genera