Common Name:

General Information

Terminalia sericea is a deciduous shrub or tree with horizontal side branches and a flat or rounded crown; it usually grows 6 - 9 metres tall , but individual trees may reach 23 metres[, , ]. When growing as a tree, the bole can be branchless for up to 8 metres, it can be straight or crooked, and is up to 50cm, occasionally 100cm in diameter[].
The tree is a popular and effective traditional medicine, being commonly harvested from the wild for local use. It also yields an edible gum, provides a range of commodities and can be grown to improve and stabilize the soil. It is an excellent pioneer species for restoring native woodland.

Known Hazards

The tree might be poisonous[].
The sawdust may cause inflammations of the respiratory organs and skin[].

Botanical References

Range

Africa - Angola, southern DR Congo, Zambia, Malawi, Tanzania, Mozambique, Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Swaziland, S. Africa.

Habitat

Scattered in open woodlands and woodland savannah, sometimes dominant or co-dominant in mixed deciduous forests, at elevations from 45 - 1,920 metres[, ].

Properties

Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Deciduous Tree
Height	7.50 m
Pollinators	Flies
Cultivation Status	Wild

Cultivation Details

The plant can tolerate some frost[].
Prefers a loamy, sandy soil[]. Plants can grow on very poor soils that are generally not suitable for agriculture[]. It is adaptable to drought and moderately adaptable to saline soils[].
A fairly slow-growing tree[].
Plants respond well to coppicing[].
The plant forms dense thickets when cut or burnt, and becomes weedy, preventing the growth of grass[].
This species hybridizes in the wild with Terminalia trichopoda[].
Young stems and branches often parasitized and bear longish round galls often up to 2-3 cm in diameter frequently with leaves[].
The flowers are powerfully and rather unpleasantly scented[].

Edible Uses

An edible gum is obtained from the plant[, ].

Medicinal

This plant is widely used in traditional medicine in Africa and these uses have been borne out by modern research into the plant's activities. Some caution is needed, however, because in Tanzania several cases of death after application of root extracts have been recorded.
Nerifolin, a glucoside, which affects the pulse rate, has been isolated from parts of the plany[].
The pentacyclic triterpenoid sericic acid has been isolated from the roots, as well as its glycoside sericoside. Sericoside has anti-inflammatory activity, whereas strong lipolytic activity has also been suggested[]
Root extracts and sericic acid have anti-inflammatory and wound-healing properties, and showed antibacterial and antifungal activities[].
Root extracts are particularly active against the bacteria Staphylococcus aureus and Streptococcus pyogenes and against the fungi Candida albicans, Candida glabrata and Cryptococcus neoformans[].
Anolignan B is another bioactive compound isolated from the roots. It showed activity against both gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria, as well as anti-inflammatory activity[].
Root extracts showed strong cytotoxic effects against several human cancer cell lines[].
Methanol extracts of the leaves showed strong in-vitro activity against HIV-1 reverse transcriptase[].

A very bitter decoction is made from the roots. It is taken internally in the treatment of venereal diseases, diarrhoea, dysentery, colic, pneumonia, cough, skin diseases, schistosomiasis, gonorrhoea and problems with menstruation[, , ].
Applied externally, the root decoction is used as an eye wash to treat trachoma and ophthalmia[].

A decoction of the bark is used in the treatment of cryptococcal meningitis and diabetes[, ].
The pulverized bark is appled externally to treat wounds[].

The leaves are used against stomach disorders and as a cough remedy[, ].

Agroforestry Uses:

The species is aggressive and is usually easily established. It regenerates readily in open areas, creating good conditions for slower-growing but longer-lived trees of the mature forest. It is a very good pioneer species for use when restoring native woodland or when establishing a woodland garden[, ].
The plant improves sites by draining waterlogged soils, shading out weeds, and enriching impoverished soils[]. It is recommended for reforestation, agroforestry, soil stabilization and general land improvement purposes[].

Other Uses

The bark is cut into strips and used as a rope to hang beehives. The roots are also cut into strips and used as a strong rope for hut construction[].

The bark is a source of tannins[].
A yellow dye is obtained from the bark[].

The leaves are used as a mordant[].

The leaf hairs are used for glazing pottery[].

A gum obtained from the plant can be used as a glue[].

The heartwood is a dull yellow with brownish stripes, darkening with age; It is clearly demarcated from the narrow band of sapwood[]. The grain is usually straight, occasionally interlocked, texture moderately coarse and uneven. The wood is hard, heavy, very tough and resistant to both termites and borers. It works well with both hand and machine tools planes and finishes easily, although rather dull surfaces are produced. It is used extensively for construction, furniture, fence posts, tool handles and as a general-purpose timber[, , ]. The boles are highly valued in traditional construction for use as poles for the construction of houses and huts, where they are said to last for at least 5 years[].
The flexible roots are used as cross-laths in huts[].
The wood makes a good fuel and charcoal[].

Propagation

Seed -

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