See text Cola is a genus of trees native to the tropical forests of Africa, classified in the family Malvaceae, subfamily Sterculioideae (previously in the separate family Sterculiaceae).

They are evergreen trees, growing up to 20 m tall (about 60 feet), with glossy ovoid leaves up to 30 cm long and star-shaped fruit.

[1] Cola is a genus of the Family Malvaceae with approximately 100 to 125 species occurring in the evergreen lowland and montane forest of continental (primarily tropical) Africa.

[2] The earliest known evidence of Cola is Cola amharaensis, a well-preserved fossil leaf compression from the late Oligocene Guang River flora of Ethiopia and dated to 27.23 ± 0.1 Ma.

[2] Outside mainland Africa, some species are cultivated for their nuts in Brazil, Jamaica and elsewhere in the humid tropics.