Common Name:

General Information

Spondianthus preussii is a tree with a dense crown; it can grow up to 28 metres tall, exceptionall specimens up to 60 metres have been reported. The bole can be free of branches for 4 - 12 metres and 20 - 150cm in diameter; it is irregularly fluted, or with rounded buttresses about 2 - 3 metres high; supported or not by stilt roots[, ].
A very poisonous plant, it is sometimes harvested from the wild for local medicinal use and as a source of wood. The stembark is sold as a rat poison in local markets[].

Known Hazards

All parts of Spondianthus preussii are extremely poisonous[].
Rice, meat or fish, cooked with the bark, bark sap or pulverized seeds, are widely used in baits to kill rodents and stray dogs[].
The plant is considered too poisonous to use as arrow poison because the poison spreads too easily through the meat; however, in Côte d’Ivoire it has sometimes been used in hunting elephants[]. Pulverized twig bark and seeds are added to drinks for criminal purposes[].
The bark sap is also used as fish poison[].
The poisonous leaves are particularly dangerous to cattle; the animals may die suddenly several hours later without any symptoms[].
Drying the leaves removes the toxicity[].

Botanical References

Range

Tropical Africa - Guinea to Sudan and Uganda, south to Congo, Angola, DR Congo and Mozambique.

Habitat

Swamp forest; less often in drier forest; locally frequent; gallery forests with Hallea stipulosa[].

Properties

Medicinal Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Tree
Height	25.00 m
Self-fertile	No
Cultivation Status	Wild

Cultivation Details

Spondianthus preussii is a plant of low to moderate elevations in the humid tropics, where it can be found at elevations up to 1,800 metres. It grows best in areas with a mean annual rainfall within the range 1,000 - 1,600 metres[].
Prefers a sandy-loamy soil[].
A dioecious species, both male and female forms need to be grown if fruit and seed are required[].

Edible Uses

None known

Medicinal

All parts of the plant are extremely poisonous, and medicinal uses are scarce[].
The leaves and stem bark contain the extremely hazardous, very toxic and volatile monofluoroacetic acid, as well as saponins, flavonoids and tannins[].
Several toxic tetracyclic triterpenoid cucurbitacins were isolated from the stembark[].
From an alcoholic extract of the stem bark the lupane-type triterpene betulinic acid (3β-hydroxy-lup-20(29)-en-28-oic acid) and several derivatives, as well as oxalic acid were isolated.
An ethyl acetate extract of the stem bark exhibited selective in-vitro antitumour activity against human melanoma. The active compound was found to be betulinic acid. This compound has a range of biological activities including in-vivo and in-vitro antitumour and antiplasmodial activity, it is not toxic and plays an important role in pharmacological research. It is commercially extracted from the temperate birch tree, Betula pubescens[].

A strongly diluted leaf decoction is sometimes drunk to treat fever[].

A bark decoction is used as mouthwash to treat toothache. It is also taken to treat stomach-ache and pains during pregnancy[].
A bark maceration is applied to snakebites[].

The fruit is used in a ceremony to cure certain cough ailments[].

Other Uses

The heartwood is brownish, strongly speckled, hard and heavy. The wood is used for construction and implements. It is used traditionally to make dugout canoes[].
The wood is dense and slow burning, it makes a good charcoal that is popular with blacksmiths[].

Propagation

Seed -

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