The genus cola belongs to
the family of sterculialeae (Malves)
According to Adebola ayeyemi (1980:137)
in his book tittled agricutlrue for Africa, the are five species that produce edible seed among which Nigeria farmers recognize four types and
given them local names . two main species
are presently of economic importance namely calanitida and cola
accuminata. The following are the ,
three known kinds of kola nuts as pointed
out by Agebala
Cola verticalate
Cola accuminata
Abidum
Cola accuminata occurs widely in
the forest zone of Nigeria. This specie is cultivated in Yoruba, Benin and
eastern part of the country. Kola nuts is classified accruing to their socio- religious significance among the
people of Izzi. In this case, Cola nitida and cola accuminata are
prevalspently cola nut among the people of Izzi. The cola accuminata is the
traditional types locally called (Oji Igbo) which is
generally used in religious and social matters. Further more, cola nitida are rarely made use of in religious matters by Izzi
traditionalist. It can be chewed as
an ordinary food.