The Leaves are 2 inches long and ¾ inch wide, tapering at both ends and with pointed tip: sometimes rounded with slightly cleft tip. The mid-rib has a tendency to curve back, the leaves folding up along it. The surface is smooth and the stalk short and stout and curved.
The Flowers, which appear in January are in small axillary clusters of a dozen or so, each having its own slender stalk growing from the tip of a stouter main stalk. There are 4 small, slender, pointed sepals, 4 petals whose tips are recurved and whose inside surfaces are covered densely with soft, erect hairs, 8-10 stamens inside the corolla, and a pleasant perfume which can be detected from a great distance.
The Fruits are like yellow cherries, with thin skin, sweet flesh and hard stone. The style remains as a prominent pointed tip to the fruit, which is very subject to grubs that may destroy the whole crop.
Uses.—The fruit is eaten and is, with its acid sweet taste, very refreshing.
ZIZYPHUS JUJUBA Lam.—Magariya. RHAMNACEAE.
This species bears a marked resemblance to Z. Spina-Christi, but differs essentially in the under-surface of the leaf having a dense pubescence. It is, as a rule, a smaller tree, though examples may be found almost as large as the other species, 40 feet high with a girth of 5-6 feet. The crown is similar, with a dense tangle of armed twigs, which interlace and droop to a considerable distance. The twigs are very slender and zig-zag sharply at the nodes. This species, unlike the other, is not often seen in towns, but occurs locally in plenty in the forest, in the more open and drier localities especially. It is, like the other, the favourite haunt of small birds, which build their nests in association with those of a small wasp. The crown is not so dense as that of Z. Spina-Christi, since the leaves are smaller and further apart.
The Bark is a smoky grey colour with a brown tinge and has narrow fissures and long stringy ridges and scales. The slash is cerise pink.
The Thorns are in pairs, the upper ¾ inch long and straight, the lower shorter and sharply recurved. They are a pale orange colour, and they and the light grey twigs are covered with a fine pubescence. The upper, straight thorn differs from that of Z. Spina-Christi in being set at near right-angles with the twig, not sharply inclined forward.