Common Name: Aidan Tree

General Information

Tetrapleura tetraptera is a deciduous tree growing 20 - 25 metres tall. The bole, which can be 50 - 90cm in diameter, is slender and older trees have very small, low, sharp buttresses. In the forest, the crown is fairly small, thin and rounded, becoming flat when old, but it tends to spread when in the open[, ].
The tree is commonly harvested from the wild for its edible fruit, medicinal applications and other commodities, all of which are used locally. The plant, especially the fruit, is often sold in local markets as a food and a medicine.

Known Hazards

The seedpod has been used as a fish poison[].

Botanical References

Range

Tropical Africa - Senegal to Sudan, Uganda and Kenya, south to Angola and Tanzania.

Habitat

Forest, especially secondary forest, growing best in the rainforest. It is found throughout the high forest zone, in riverine forest, in the southern savannah-woodland and in the forest outliers in the African plains[].

Properties

Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Deciduous Tree
Height	20.00 m
Cultivation Status	Wild

Cultivation Details

A plant of the moist tropical lowlands, where it is found at elevations up to 600 metres[]. It grows best in areas where annual daytime temperatures fall within the range 25 - 30°c, but can tolerate 20 - 35°c[]. It prefers a mean annual rainfall in the range 1,700 - 3,000mm, tolerating 1,200 - 5,000mm[].
Requires a sunny position[]. Grows best in a light to medium, well-drained soil[]. Prefers a pH in the range 4.5 - 6.5, tolerating 4 - 7[].

Edible Uses

Fruit - raw or cooked. The fruit pulp is rich in sugars and may be used in flavouring both sweet and savoury foods[, , ]. The dark, red-brown seedpods have four longitudinal ridges - two of these are woody, the other two are filled with a soft, sugary, edible pulp with a caramel-like odour[]. The fruit is shiny, glabrous, dark purple-brown, usually slightly curved, 15 - 25cm long by about 5cm across, the 4 longitudinal, wing-like ridges nearly 3 cm broad[]. The seedpod is very persistent, hanging at the ends of branches on stout stalks 25cm long[].

Medicinal

The plant is a commonly used and important medicinal herb in parts of Africa, being employed in treating a wide range of conditions. All parts of the plant are used, though the fruits are the most widely and commonly employed[].

The fruit is reported to have antiarthritic, antiinflammatory and antidiabetic properties. It is used to treat cardiovascular disorders, hypertension, convulsions and epilepsy, gastro-intestinal disorders, malaria and other fevers, diabetes, asthma and chest pain, low body immunity, flu and colds, reproductive disorders, cancer of the breast and uterus, skin disorders for newly born babies, wounds and burns, back pain and general body pains and weakness, dental disorders[].

The stem bark is used to treat cardiovascular disorders, gastro-intestinal disorders, malaria and other fevers, low body immunity, reproductive disorders, cancer of the breast and uterus, general body pains and weakness, dental disorders[]

The leaves are used to treat convulsions and epilepsy, malaria and other fevers, reproductive disorders, general body pains and weakness[].

The root bark is used to treat gastro-intestinal disorders, malaria and other fevers[].

The seed is used to treat gastro-intestinal disorders, malaria and other fevers, snake bites[].

The plant is used in managing schistosomiasis, a chronic parasitic disease caused by blood flukes (trematode worms)[].

Other Uses

Tannin is obtainable from the fruit pulp[, ].

The fruits and flowers are used as perfumes and in pomades prepared from palm oil[].

The heartwood is reddish to brown; the sapwood is white, The wood is fairly hard and heavy, of moderate durability[, , , ]. It is used for small furniture items, door and window frames, building poles, pestles, tool handles and carvings[, ].
The wood is used for fuel[].

Propagation

Seed - sown in a nursery seedbed or individual containers, they usually take about 6 days to germinate[]. Pot them up into individual containers when they are about five weeks old. They can then be planted out about 3 weeks later[]..

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