From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Faidherbia albida
Faidherbia albida
Faidherbia albida in a given grove are genetically identical and seem to
have multiplied by vegetative reproduction only, for
thousands of years.[citation needed]
Cultivation and uses
Faidherbia albida is important in the Sahel for raising bees,
since its flowers provide bee forage at the close of the
rainy season, when most other local plants do not.[4]
The seed pods are important for raising livestock,
are used as camel fodder in Nigeria,[4] and are relished
by elephant, antelope, buffalo, baboons and various
Faidherbia albida growing with palms and maize crops browsers and grazers, though strangely ignored by
warthog and zebra. [5]
Scientific classification
The wood is used for canoes, mortars, and pestles and
Kingdom: Plantae the bark is pounded in Nigeria and used as a packing ma-
terial on pack animals. The wood has a density of about
(unranked): Angiosperms
560 kg/m³ at a water content of 12%.[6] The energy value
(unranked): Eudicots of the wood as fuel is 19.741 kJ/kg.[4]
(unranked): Rosids Ashes of the wood are used in making soap and as a
depilatory and tanning agent for hides. VITA (1977) says
Order: Fabales the wood is used for carving; the thorny branches useful
Family: Fabaceae for a natural barbed fence. Pods and foliage are highly re-
garded as livestock fodder. Some 90% of Senegalese farm-
Genus: Faidherbia
ers interviewed by Felker (1981) collected, stored, and ra-
Species: F. albida tioned Acacia alba pods to livestock. Rhodesians use the
pods to stupefy fish. Humans eat the boiled seeds in times
Binomial name
of scarcity in Rhodesia."
Faidherbia albida It is also used for nitrogen fixation, erosion control
(Delile) A.Chev. for crops, for food, drink and medicine. Unlike most oth-
er trees, it sheds its leaves in the rainy season; for this
Faidherbia albida (syn. Acacia albida Delile) is a species of reason, it is highly valued in agroforestry as it can grow
Faidherbia native to Africa and the Middle East, formerly among field crops without shading them.[1] It contains
widely included in the genus Acacia. It has also been in- the psychoactive chemical compound dimethyltrypta-
troduced to India and Pakistan. Common names for it in- mine in its leaves.[7]The leaves from this legume tree are
clude Apple-ring Acacia Ana Tree and Winter Thorn [1]
Acacia, Thorn. high in nitrogen, and can double yields in maize crops,
It is a thorny tree growing up to 6–30 m tall and 2 m etc., when added to the soil. There is a program planned
in trunk diameter. Its deep-penetrating tap root makes it to translplant the tree across Adrica to boost production..
highly resistant to drought. The bark is grey, and fissured
when old. There are 11000 seeds/kg. Faidherbia albida is Medicinal uses
not listed as being a threatened species.[1][2][3]
The extract is used to treat ocular infections in farm ani-
It grows in areas with 250-600 mm/yr of rain.[3]
mals.[4] Reported to serve as an emetic in fevers (Maasai),
Faiderbia albida is known in the Bambara language as
taken for diarrhea in Tanganyika. Also used for colds, di-
balanzan, and is the official tree of the city of Segou, on
arrhea, hemorrhage, and ophthalmia in West Africa. The
the Niger River in central Mali. According to legend, Se-
bark of the Ana tree is a folk remedy for diarrhea among
gou is home to 4,444 balanzan trees, plus one mysterious
several tribes. On the Ivory Coast it is used for leprosy.
"missing tree" the location of which cannot be identified.
The bark decoction curtails nausea. A liniment, made by
The northernmost natural populations are found in
steeping the bark, is used for bathing and massage in
relict groves in Israel (in the Shimron nature reserve,
pneumonia.
near the communal settlement of Timrat). All of the trees
1
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Faidherbia albida
Regional Names References
• B.van Wyk and P.van Wyk. 1997. Field Guide to trees of
southern Africa. Struik, Cape Town
• Edmund G.C.Barrow. 1996. The Drylands of Africa:Local
Participation in Tree Management. Initiatives
Publishers: Nairobi, Kenya.
• C.Michael Hogan, ed. 2010. Faidherbia albida.
Encyclopedia of Life.
• A.E.G.Storrs. 1979. Know Your Trees: Some Common
Trees Found in Zambia. Government Republic of
Zambia, Forestry Department: Ndola, Zambia.
• Africa: Forestry, Agroforestry and Environment
• Hawaiian Ecosystems at Risk project (HEAR)
Branch with flowers • Purdue University New Crop Resource Online
Program
Language Name • BBC News story on Mali’s Faidherbia albida trees
Afrikaans Ana, ana-boom
Arabic (Chad) Harraz External links
Arabic (Sudan) Haraz, hiraz • Faidherbia albida in West African plants - A Photo
Bambara (Bamanankan) Balansan, balasa Guide.
• "Faidherbia albida". Plantz Afrika.
Djerma Gao
http://www.plantzafrica.com/plantefg/faidalb.htm.
English Apple-ring acacia, winterthorn Retrieved 2010-02-09.
French Kad, cadde
Fula (Fulfulde; Pulaar) Cayki, caski
Hausa Gao
Hebrew ( שיטה מלבינהsheeta malbina)
Kuunda Musangu
Maasai Ol-erai
Moore Zanga, zaaga
Somali Garbi
Tabwa Muchese
Tamachek athes, ahtes, ates
Tonga Musangu, muunga
Turkana Edurukoit
Wolof Kad
Notes
[1] ^ ILDIS LegumeWeb
[2] African Plants Database: Faidherbia albida
[3] ^ FAO: Handbook on Seeds of Dry-Zone Acacias
[4] ^ World AgroForestry
[5] http://journals.cambridge.org/action/
displayAbstract;jsessionid=171A483BCAB24F51B511E3CE58ED9233.journals?fromPage=online&aid=5256972
[6] FAO: Role of acacia species in the rural economy of
dry Africa and the Near East
[7] Shaman Australis
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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Faidherbia albida
Categories:
• Mimosoideae
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