Cola urceolata

Cola urceolata
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Embryophytes
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Spermatophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Clade:	Rosids
Order:	Malvales
Family:	Malvaceae
Genus:	Cola
Species:	C. urceolata
Binomial name
Cola urceolata K.Schum. (1900)
Synonyms
Cola longifolia De Wild. Cola nalaensis De Wild. Cola nalaensis subsp. variifolia De Wild. Cola yambuyaensis De Wild.

Cola urceolata, also known as bemange, bokosa, eboli, egwasa, ikaie, lekukumu, lungandu, lusakani, matadohohu, nesunguna, ngbilimo, ngono, and zimonziele, is a flowering shrub in the family Malvaceae.¹ The specific epithet (urceolata) comes from Latin urceus (= pitcher, jug) and means "urn-shaped".

Cola urceolata is native to Central Africa, from southeastern Nigeria south to Kongo Central province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and northeast to southeastern Central African Republic.²

Cola urceolata is an evergreen shrub that grows to 3 meters (9.8 feet) in height.¹ The dark green leaves are elliptical in shape and the flowers are yellow to white and three-petaled.² The fruit somewhat resembles a pepper in shape, and is red when ripe and green when unripe. It is curved and tapers to a point towards its non-stem end. They grow in clusters, normally of three. The fruit, seeds, flowers, and leaves are edible.¹

The fruit and other edible parts of the plant are eaten raw or cooked in its native range.¹