COCA
Erythroxylum coca
Erythroxylum NOVAGRANATENSE
Erythroxylaceae
The coca or coca bush is a small tree native to tropical regions of South America that can grow in the wild 5 to 6 m, but is usually pruned to stay shorter and allow the harvest of leaves.
The branches, straight and alternate, often reddish (hence its name Erythroxylum), bright green leaves are between 2 and 5 cm long, they have a central portion bounded by two curved lines, especially visible on the underside. In drying they remain flat, the smell is pleasant, slightly aromatic (sometimes smell of tea when they begin to dry).
The flowers are white, pentamerous, and fruit drupes oblong, red, 1 cm.
Erythroxyum novogranatense Erythroxylum coca are cultivated for a very long time in the Andean region, there are several varieties.
They are found mainly in the equatorial zone, tropical wet (between 300 and 2000 m) South America (Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Brazil), on the slopes of the Andes (the Yungas, as in the region Bolivian Chapare), and the Amazon plain, the coca is adaptable to other regions and is thus present in other countries with tropical or sub tropical heat with a marked wet season (Mexico, Caribbean, Africa (Cameroon ), Indonesia (Java), Sri Lanka (Ceylon), Australia)
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