Texan Hogplum

Description

Colubrina texensis is a genus of libas. It was first described by John Torrey and Samuel Frederick Gray, and given the exact name of Samuel Frederick Gray. Colubrina texensis belongs to the genus libas, and family Rhamnaceae. Colubrina is a genus of about 30 species of flowering plants in the family Rhamnaceae, native to warm temperate to tropical regions of Africa, the Americas, southern Asia, northern Australia, and the Indian Ocean islands. Common names include nakedwood, snakewood, greenheart and hogplum. The generic name is derived from the Latin word coluber, meaning "snake", and refers to the snake-like stems or stamens. The species are shrubs and small trees growing 1-10 metres (3.3-32.8 ft) tall, with simple ovate leaves. The flowers are small, greenish-white or yellowish; the fruit is a capsule containing three seeds. The genus is at least in part a wastebasket taxon, and revision will likely result in the renaming of a number of species to different genera. Colubrina asiatica, native to tropical Asia, eastern Africa and northern Australia, has become an invasive species in Florida.