Common Name:

General Information

Sterculia tragacantha is sometimes a deciduous shrub growing 5 - 12 metres tall, but more often it becomes a tree up to 25 metres tall with exceptional specimens to 40 metres. The crown tends to be fairly small and sparsely branched[]. The bole, which sometimes has winged buttresses, can be 75cm in diameter and unbranched for up to 18 metres[].
The tree is valued especially for the gum obtained from its trunk, which has a range of applications. The young leaves are sometimes an important local food[].
Sterculia tragacantha has a very wide distribution, large population, is not currently experiencing any major threats and no significant future threats have been identified. The plant is classified as 'Least Concern' in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species(2018)[].

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

,

Range

Tropical Africa - Sierra Leone to DR Congo, south to Angola, Zambia and Tanzania.

Habitat

Mangrove; open and drier parts of rain and swampy forests; secondary and transition forests; gallery forest; wooded savannah; at elevations from near sea level to about 1,500 metres[]. Often found in groups at forest edges[].

Properties

Conservation Status	Least Concern
Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Deciduous Tree
Height	15.00 m
Cultivation Status	Wild

Cultivation Details

The tree coppices well[].

Edible Uses

Young shoots and leaves - cooked as a vegetable[, ]. The leaves are used for wrapping 'dokon', an acidic, fermented corn dumpling[].

Seeds - cooked[]. They can be roasted and eaten whole like peanuts, or roasted, pounded and then cooked with vegetables such as peas or pumpkins[].

A tragacanth-like gum that exudes from the stem is used in confectionery[].

Medicinal

Decoctions made from the leaves, barks and seeds are used by local African healers to alleviate diarrhoea, arthritis, oedema and gout. People of the Nsukka area, in the south-east part of Nigeria, use the plant to support orthopaedic patients for pain relief after bone fracture[].

The gum obtained from the trunk is used like gum tragacanth (from Astragalus gummifer). These uses are as follows:-

The gum is demulcent, though it is not often used internally because it is not completely soluble[]. This gum has recently been shown to stimulate the immune system and to suppress tumours[].
The gum has long been employed externally as a dressing for burns and is also used in lozenges in order to bind the ingredients and impart consistency to the product[].

Other Uses

A gum is obtained from wounds made in the trunk. It closely resembles gum tragacanth (obtained from Astragalus gummifer), and is used to adulterate gum arabic (obtained from Acacia sp.)[]. The gum is used in its own right as a form of gum tragacanth in the textiles, cosmetic and ice cream industries[].

A fibre is obtained from the bark[].

The wood is white and somewhat soft, planes easily and works up to a neat finish[]. It is used for posts, boards and construction work[].

Propagation

A physical dormancy caused by the hard seed coat of the mature seeds of many species in this genus can be overcome by scarifying the seed. This is carried out by cutting away or abrading some of the seed coat to allow the ingress of water, though great care must be taken not to damage the embryo[]. The aril surrounding the seed should also be removed - this is easiest when it has been softened through soaking in water[]. The seeds germinate optimally at temperatures between 20 - 30°c. They can be sown in a nursery seedbed or in containers. A germination rate of about 95%, occurring within about 2 weeks can be expected if the seed has been properly treated[].

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