Majidea zanguebarica
| Majidea zanguebarica | |
|---|---|
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| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| (unranked): | Angiosperms |
| (unranked): | Eudicots |
| (unranked): | Rosids |
| Order: | Sapindales |
| Family: | Sapindaceae |
| Genus: | Majidea |
| Species: | M. zanguebarica |
| Binomial name | |
| Majidea zanguebarica J.Kirk | |
The mgambo tree, Majidea zangueberica, native to East Africa is a small tree at maturity growing up to 5 metres (16 ft) tall. This very ornamental small tree has shiny foliage with an attractive rounded canopy, making it very suitable for small tropical gardens or a container plant in cooler climates. They are hardy only in frost-free zones, otherwise they can make a rare and unique houseplant as they are smaller when container grown. The leaves are compound with up to 10 pairs of leaflets, which are elliptic about 5–7 centimetres (2.0–2.8 in) long and 2–3 cm (0.79–1.18 in) wide. Its highly ornamental seeds mean it's sometimes referred to as the black pearl tree or velvet-seed tree. It flowers with dense custers of small green-red, fragrant flowers at the end of panicles. Fruit is spherical with 3 lobes, 3 cm (1.2 in) long. The fruit splits open, showing the bright red interior, with 3 spherical, velvety blue-black seeds. The seeds are often used in artisan jewelry and dried pods in the composition of bouquets and pot pourris.
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