Closely related to Albizia gummifera, with which it hybridizes in the wild[].

Common Name:

General Information

Albizia grandibracteata is a deciduous tree with a rounded or flat crown; it can grow 6 - 30 metres tall.
The tree is harvested from the wild for local use as a medicine and source of wood. It is cultivated as an ornamental and shade tree, and also to improve the soil[].

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

Range

Tropical Africa - southern Sudan, eastern DR Congo, Uganda, Kenya, Rwanda, Burundi, northern Tanzania.

Habitat

Rainforest; riverine forest; grassland; remnant of transitional (riverine) forest; Acacia woodland between large gneiss boulders; near a rivulet in open woodland; tangle near stream; often a forest pioneer; etc[].

Properties

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

Cultivation Details

This species has a symbiotic relationship with certain soil bacteria, these bacteria form nodules on the roots and fix atmospheric nitrogen. Some of this nitrogen is utilized by the growing plant but some can also be used by other plants growing nearby[].

Edible Uses

None known

Medicinal

A leaf infusion, combined with other ingredients, is used in a vapour bath to treat fevers[]. The pounded leaf is combined with other ingredients to treat diarrhoea[].

A root infusion is drunk to treat tonsillitis[, ].

A methanolic extract of the leaves, and saponins isolated from this extract, have shown in-vitro antitumor activity against KB and MCF7 cell lines[].

Agroforestry Uses:

The tree is valued for providing shade for crops such as coffee, tea and vanilla, and is also planted or retained for soil conservation and improvement[].

Other Uses

The following report is for Albizia gummifera. This species is very similar and has the same uses[].

The heartwood is yellowish brown or reddish brown, often with a golden tinge; it is distinctly demarcated from the 7 - 10cm wide pale yellow or white sapwood. The grain is straight or interlocked, texture medium to coarse. The wood properties are variable and depend on the origin of the wood, that from Madagascar being heaviest and strongest. The wood is moderately light to moderately heavy[]. It generally saws and works fairly easily with ordinary hand and machine tools, but sawn and planed surfaces tend to pick up. The use of a filler is necessary to obtain a good finish. The wood holds nails and screws well and does not split easily. The gluing and staining properties are satisfactory, and steam bending properties moderate. Reports on durability of the heartwood are contradictory, but in general it is susceptible to fungal, wood borer and termite attack[]. The wood is used for light construction, furniture, cabinet work and various implements. It is also suitable for mine props, light flooring, joinery, interior trim, panelling, framing, toys and novelties, sporting goods, boxes, crates, carvings, peeled and sliced veneer, plywood, hardboard and particle board[]. Logs are traditionally used for the construction of canoes[]. The wood pulp is suitable for paper production[].
The wood is sometimes used as firewood and for making charcoal[].

Propagation

Seed - it has a hard seedcoat and may benefit from scarification before sowing to speed up germination. This can usually be done by pouring a small amount of nearly boiling water on the seeds (being careful not to cook them!) and then soaking them for 12 - 24 hours in warm water. By this time they should have imbibed moisture and swollen - if they have not, then carefully make a nick in the seedcoat (being careful not to damage the embryo) and soak for a further 12 hours before sowing.

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