Common Name:

General Information

Landolphia heudelotii is a bushy or climbing shrub that can produce stems up to 15 metres long[].
The plant is highly valued for its fruit, which is gathered from the wild and often sold in local markets[]. This species was at one time the main rubber supplier to Senegal, Guinea, and the French Sudan (modern Mali). Some of its rubber even reached Europe[]. The plants were so heavily over-exploited that, towards the end of the 19th century the wild population had dropped dramatically and local farmers were encouraged to cultivate the plant in gardens and farms[]. Demand for the rubber from this plant is now almost non-existent, apart from various local uses, because most rubber is tapped from the S. American Hevea brasiliensis or is synthesised[].

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

Range

Western tropical Africa - Senegal to N. Ghana.

Habitat

Mainly a savannah and understory shrub, it is often found in open forests and on laterite and sandy soils near rivers[].

Properties

Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Climber
Height	15.00 m
Cultivation Status	Wild

Cultivation Details

The plant grows under trees and is promising for agroforestry[].
The plant is said to withstand bush-fires and grazing[].

Edible Uses

The fruit pulp is edible and refreshing[]. It is slightly acidulous and mucilaginous and is said to promote good digestion[]. The pulp surrounding the seeds is filled with a juice that is regarded as very healthful and is sometimes prescribed as an aid to digestion[]. Rich in organic acids, this pulp is used as a snack, as a breakfast food, and as a source of refreshing drinks[]. The juice is commonly used to season rice with its sprightly sourness[]. It is fermented to make an alcoholic drink[]. The yellow fruit is pear-shaped or globose and often suddenly contracted into a stout stipe, 3 - 8cm in diameter.

Medicinal

A decoction of the stems, or of the roots, is given for treating intestinal pains[]. It is not purgative[].

Vapour from a boiling concoction of leafy twigs is inhaled orally for tooth troubles[].

The plant (part not stated) is used in draughts and added to squat-baths in treating haemorrhoids[].

A decoction of the roots, and of the fruit pulp, with some lime-juice is added to baths as a remedy for fatigue[].

The seeds have unspecified medicinal use in Sierra Leone[].

Other Uses

The plant contains an abundance of white latex and the rubber obtained from it is of good quality[, ]. The sap is no longer used commercially, but has local applications - to fix bicycle tubes, for example[].

Propagation

Seed -
Cuttings

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