Piptadeniastrum
Piptadeniastrum africanum is a tall deciduous tree within the legume family, Fabaceae. It is native to the humid tropics of sub-Saharan Africa, ranging from Senegal to Sudan and Angola. It is the sole species in genus Piptadeniastrum. It is also called Piptadenia africana, and its timber is traded under the names Dabema or Dahoma. It commonly occurs in freshwater swamp forests but can also be found further north.
Article
5 sectionsContents
- Description
- Distribution
- Chemistry
- Uses
- References
Piptadeniastrum africanum is a tall deciduous tree within the legume family, Fabaceae. It is native to the humid tropics of sub-Saharan Africa, ranging from Senegal to Sudan and Angola. It is the sole species in genus Piptadeniastrum. It is also called Piptadenia africana, and its timber is traded under the names Dabema or Dahoma. It commonly occurs in freshwater swamp forests but can also be found further north.
== Description == Piptadeniastrum africanum is a medium-sized to large tree capable of growing to 50 meters tall, with the record being and a maximum girth a breast height of in Ghana. It has wide spreading branches. Its trunk is straight and cylindrical while the base of the tree has thin buttress roots that can reach a height of 5 meters or more and extends along the ground, its bark is grey to brown in color but reddish at the base. Leaves are alternate, bipinnately compound in arrangement with about 10 - 20 pairs of pinnae and about 30 - 58 leaflets per each pinnae. Leaflets, sessile and small, 0.3 x 1 cm long and 0.8 x 1.25 mm wide, glossy green above and paler beneath. Flower is yellowish to white colored and fruit is a brown woody pod.