How to identify Kei-Apple
Identify Kei-Apple by combining habit, leaf characters, flower or fruit details, location, and its family pattern. Do not rely on one feature alone.
- Look for a tree habit.
- Check the distinctive field mark: Sour orange edible fruit (kei-apple).
- Confirm leaf type: Simple.
- Confirm leaf shape: Ovate.
- Confirm flower arrangement: Solitary.
- Confirm fruit type: Berry.
- Confirm it sits within the Flacourtiaceae family pattern, then compare close relatives before deciding it is Kei-Apple.
Plant Details
- Scientific name
- Dovyalis caffra
- Genus
- Dovyalis
- Family
- Flacourtiaceae
- Habit
- Tree
Leaf characters
- Leaf type
- SimplerecordedA single, undivided leaf blade.“Buds at the base of the spine produce clusters of alternately arranged simple ovate leaves 3–6 cm long.” — Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Leaf shape
- OvaterecordedEgg-shaped, broader near the base.“Buds at the base of the spine produce clusters of alternately arranged simple ovate leaves 3–6 cm long.” — Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
Typical of the family
- Arrangement
- Alternate
Characters marked “recorded” are for Kei-Apple itself; the rest are typical of the Flacourtiaceae family.
Flower & fruit characters
- Flower arrangement
- SolitaryrecordedA single flower borne alone, not in a cluster.“The flowers are inconspicuous, solitary or clustered, with no petals.” — Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Fruit type
- BerryrecordedA fleshy fruit with seeds embedded directly in the pulp, no central stone.“The fruit is an edible bright yellow or orange globose berry 2.5–4 cm diameter, with the skin and flesh of a uniform colour and containing several small seeds.” — Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
Typical of the family
- Flower symmetry
- Actinomorphic (radially symmetrical)
- Inflorescence
- Cyme
- Fruit
- Berry
Characters marked “recorded” are for Kei-Apple itself; the rest are typical of the Flacourtiaceae family — flowering plants only.
About Kei-Apple
A member of the Flacourtiaceae family, Kei-apple (Dovyalis caffra) is a tree.
Uses
It is grown for parts that are eaten and planted as an ornamental.
Flacourtiaceae
Flacourtia Family
Kei-Apple belongs to the Flacourtiaceae family.
The illustration represents the family — not necessarily this exact species.
Explore the Flacourtiaceae familySnap it. Know it.
Point your camera at Kei-Apple or any plant and SASYA identifies it instantly — on-device, offline, and private.
Common plant problems
If you are starting from symptoms instead of a diagnosis, use the plant disease symptom checker to narrow the cause before treating.
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