Marula

The Marula trees are grown in abundance on the hard soil of Botswana. The tourists can enjoy the sight of the Marula trees mostly in the Okavango Delta. The general height of the Marula trees is between 15 to 20 meters. The Marula consists of a single stem with a widely spread bark. The distinctive feature of the bark is its gray color with spots and patches. The flakes on the bark are shaped like discs. The branches of Marula on the top part of the trees are very heavy and they point towards the sky.

The leaves create a beauty for the Marula trees. The Marula leaves are colored with a compound mixture of gray and green. But such a gray-green color can be found only in the earlier days of its growth. Gradually with the passage of time, the Marula leaves turn to pale yellow color. The leaves are arranged in a spiral order. But tourists should visit Botswana in spring or summer to enjoy the beauty of the leaves of Marula trees. For most of the year, the Marula tree is bare, without leaves.

The other distinguishing feature of Marula is its fruits. They can also be seen only in the summer. The Marula fruits look like golf balls. In its youth, the Marula fruits are green but gradually become butter-yellow. The tourists find the Marula trees with fruits and leaves quite exhilarating in the summer season.