Coffee Colubrina
(Snakebark)
Colubrina arborescens
Plant Family: Rhamnaceae
Leaves: Alternate, simple, stiff, ovate, to 15 cm, dark green above with reddish brown hairs below, especially along the veins. New leaves and twigs are reddish brown.
Bark: Light gray and flaking off like a snake sheds its skin.
Flowers: Yellow, with 5 petals, in axillary clusters in the summer.
Fruits: A round, green, 3-part capsule that turns blue-black, to 1 cm, held in short clusters near the branch ends from fall into winter; when ripe they open abruptly, catapulting the seeds some distance from the parent tree.
Habitat: Hammocks of the Keys and the Lower Peninsula.
Growth Form: Shrub to small tree.
Similar Species: Soldierwood (Colubrina elliptica) has thin leaves with orange fruits; Cuban Colubrina (Colubrina cubensis) also has leathery leaves but with round-toothed margins.
Comments: Coffee Colubrina is listed as an endangered species in Florida where it reaches the northern part of its range. It also inhabits the West Indies, Mexico, and Central and South America.
