Local names:
Arabic (zobra,mikah), Somali (garas), Swahili (mkupa), Tigrigna (gharsai,geresa)
Dobera glabra is an evergreen shrub or tree up to 8-10 m high. The smooth, green, greyish-brown to dark grey bark is fissured in rectangular patches; bark on younger wood is grey. Leaves opposite, olive-green, leathery, slightly fleshy and smooth. Flowers white, bisexual, in axillary and terminal panicles. Fruit greenish turning purple when mature, rough on the outside, shaped like a small egg, about 2 cm long and 1 cm wide, pointed at the end, with a white seed coated with a slimy red skin. The specific name, ‘glabra’, is Latin for ‘smooth’, ‘without hairs’, or ‘bald’.
Ecology
The species occurs in thorn bushes or scrubs of Acacia, Balanites and Commiphora, on rocky hillsides and saline riverbeds. It mainly occupies the arid and semi-arid regions of Africa. In Kenya, D. glabra is found mainly in the northern coast and provinces. Trees are able to withstand short-term waterlogging.
Native range
Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, India, Kenya, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda
Tree management
A single tree may produce as much as 50 kg of seeds/year. Spacing should be at least 10 m apart. Once trees are properly established, they can tolerate repeated lopping or browsing. The species may be endangered, so planting of trees should be encouraged.
Seed storage behaviour is recalcitrant, with seeds being sensitive to desiccation and viability declining rapidly in open storage. However, seeds can be stored for a few days in well-ventilated containers with moist sawdust. On average, there are about 1300 seeds/kg.
The species occurs in thorn bushes or scrubs of Acacia, Balanites and Commiphora, on rocky hillsides and saline riverbeds. It mainly occupies the arid and semi-arid regions of Africa. In Kenya, D. glabra is found mainly in the northern coast and provinces. Trees are able to withstand short-term waterlogging.
All known propagation is by seed, either by direct sowing or from the nursery. Seeds should be collected from the trees just as the fruits are turning brown. No pretreatment is required before sowing, but germination is quite slow, probably dependent on the age of the seeds. After extraction, seeds should be sown immediately. Under ideal conditions, fresh and carefully extracted seeds germinate within 40-60 days. The expected germination rate for mature and healthy seed lots is 80% on average. Growth is slow; even after a year, seedlings may have grown only 10 cm in height. It is recommended that seedlings spend no more than 4-5 months in the nursery, as repeated root pruning will damage the plant. An alternative is direct seeding, where seeds are planted just before the rains in some form of microcatchment. The slow-growing, palatable seedlings need to be protected from browsing for the 1st 4-5 years of their lives.
Fruits and seeds are edible; seeds need to be boiled for a long time before they can be eaten.
Leaves are very palatable and browsed by all livestock.
D. glabra is planted for firewood.
Timber: The fairly soft wood is used for carving such as for pestles, mortars, spoons, storage containers and other domestic items. It is also used for making bed-frames and stools.
Shade or shelter: D. glabra is often planted in villages as a shade tree.
Ornamental: The attractive trees are planted in amenity areas.