Schleichera oleosa

Schleichera oleosa is a medium size brevi-deciduous tree growing up to 10 m. 
The bole is usually crooked, can be fluted and slightly buttressed on the old specimen. 
The species is dioecious and it is slow-growing. 
Schleichera oleosa is mostly noticed because of its bright red leaves when they are new.

The bark of Schleichera oleosa is pale grey, darkening with age. 
The bark is flaking off in irregular scales. 
The bark is thick, smooth and brittle. 
The tree is thornless.

The leaves of Schleichera oleosa are compound, pinnate, with an alternate arrangement. 
The rachis is 5 to 12 cm long, glabrous and swollen at its base. 
The leaflets are 4 to 6 in number.  
The leaflets are opposite with small petioles. 
Each leaflet is about 5 to 15 cm long and 2 to 5 cm wide. 
The leaflets are elliptic-oblong, ovate or obovate, with the base oblique, the apex acute or obtuse and the margin entire. 
The leaves are leathery and glabrous. 
The young leaves are bright red to bronze, a mostly noticed feature.

The flowers of Schleichera oleosa are male and bisexual. 
The inflorescences are born in dense drooping clusters. 
The flowers are small, less than 1 cm in size, and green-yellow in colour. 
The male flowers have a 5 lobbed calyx, no petals and 8 stamens inserted within the disc. 
The bisexual flowers have a short style and a cleft stigma. 

The fruits of Schleichera oleosa is a drupe, about 1.5 cm across. 
The fruit shows a small pointy beak. 
It is ruddy brown when ripe with a hard, smooth skin sometimes spiny. 
It has 1 or 2 seeds inside, enclosed in a pulpy aril which has a pleasant acid taste.

The seeds of Schleichera oleosa are enclosed in an edible acid pulp. 
They are usually 1 or 2 per fruit. 
The seed coat is smooth and brown in colour. 
An oil is extracted from the seed, which is called kusum oil.