About Trichilia emetica (Forssk.) Vahl
Trichilia emetica (Forssk.) Vahl is an evergreen, medium to large tree that reaches up to 25 meters in height. This species has separate male and female individual plants, and produces a dense, spreading crown. Its leaflets are dark and glossy green on the upper surface, with tips that are more or less rounded or broadly pointed. The lower leaflet surface ranges from sparsely to densely hairy, and bears 11 to 18 pairs of closely spaced principal side veins. The flowers of Trichilia emetica are creamy green, sweetly scented, and bloom from August to November. The fruit is a dehiscent capsule 18 to 25 millimeters in diameter, with a sharp distinction from a 5 to 10 millimeter long neck. The seeds are black, and are almost completely covered by a bright red aril. The fruit of this plant acts as an emetic, which is the source of its scientific species name. These trees grow in riverine vegetation and open woodland, ranging from KwaZulu-Natal Province of South Africa to Tropical Africa.
