Common Name: Monkey Fruit

General Information

Dactyladenia barteri varies in habit from a climbing shrub to a small tree growing up to 12 metres tall with a dense, spreading crown[]. The bole is crooked and fluted, often with multiple stems, up to 25 - 40cm in diameter[].
The plant is widely used in west Africa in soil stabilization and restoration schemes, and also for interplanting in plantations. It provides a useful timber and also has minor medicinal uses. It is often retained when clearing forest for cultivation[].

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

Range

Western tropical Africa - Sierra Leone to Nigeria, south to Gabon and Congo.

Habitat

Lowland forest with at least 1,200mm rainfall per year. In the forest-savannah transition zone, it is found along riverbanks, sometimes on the inland side of mangrove forest[].

Properties

Medicinal Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Tree
Height	10.00 m
Pollinators	Red ants, Bees, Wasps
Cultivation Status	Cultivated, Semi-cultivated, Wild

Cultivation Details

A plant of the moist, lowland tropics, being found at elevations below 300 metres[]. It grows in areas where the mean annual temperature is in the range 20 - 34°c, and the mean annual rainfall is 750 - 1,500 mm[].
Well adapted to leached, acid and infertile (ultisols) soils, the plant can also survive occasional flooding[].
Established trees coppice well, even after pollarding or burning, and are fire resistant[, ].
Planted at 4 metres x 4metres, this species can produce 6 tonnes per hectare dry prunings, 4 tonnes of twigs and 9 tonnes of wood within 8 months[].
It has been suggested that Dactyladenia lehmbachii and Dactyladenia pallescens, which flower in the same period, may cross-pollinate with this species[].

Edible Uses

None known

Medicinal

The bark and roots are used medicinally as a purgative and against a variety of ailments[].

Agroforestry Uses:

The shrubs have an extensive, deep root system that holds the soil and so can be used in schemes to prevent soil erosion[, ].
The tree produces large amounts of litter and recycles appreciable quantities of nutrients through its deep root system, whilst its dense canopy aids in weed suppression[]. It has shown promise as mulch and soil regenerator because of its slow decomposition rate[, ].
The stems provide good quality poles for staking yams and for construction[].
The tree is planted in hedgerows in a traditional alley cropping system with inter-hedgerow spacing of 2 - 3 metres and with 1 - 2 years of cropping followed by 3 - 4 years of fallow. Following the fallow period, the shrubs are underbrushed and burned and stems cut to a height of 10 - 20cm. Some stems are left uncut for live staking of Guinea yam (Dioscorea cayenensis). Crops are then interplanted in the alleys[].

Other Uses

The dark red wood is hard, durable and resistant to termite attack[, ]. The stems provide good quality poles for staking crops and are also used for construction work[].
The wood is used for fuel[].

Propagation

Seed - germinates readily[]. Direct sowing is possible but seedlings survive better when raised in nursery bags before planting out[].
Seed germinates readily and can be stored for up to 6 months at 15°c when treated with copper sulphate[].
Occasionally, stakes are used as cuttings in live fence systems[]. Juvenile stem cuttings will also root quickly at the peak of the rainy season[].

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