Common Name:

General Information

Autranella congolensis is an evergreen tree with an umbrella-shaped, flattened crown; usually growing up to 40 metres tall, occasionally to 50 metres. The straight, cylindrical bole can be unbranched for up to 30 metres, it is up to 150cm in diameter and often slightly buttressed at the base[].
The tree is harvested from the wild for local use as a food, medicine and source of wood. The wood is of good quality and is also harvested commercially and sometimes exported[].
A relatively rare rainforest species, it has been heavily exploited for its timber. The plant is classified as 'Critically Endangered' in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species(2011)[].

Known Hazards

The wood dust may cause serious irritation to nose, throat and eyes[].

Botanical References

Range

West tropical Africa - Nigeria to Central African Republic, south to Gabon and DR Congo.

Habitat

Primary evergreen rainforests[, ].

Properties

Conservation Status	Critically Endangered
Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Evergreen Tree
Height	35.00 m
Growth Rate	Slow
Cultivation Status	Wild

Cultivation Details

A slow-growing tree[].
The fruits take 10 - 14 months to ripen. It has been reported that in the dry season many young fruits fall, long before they are ripe[].
Natural regeneration is poor, seedlings are often rare in the wild[].
Logs sink in water and cannot be transported by river[].

Edible Uses

The fruits are reported to be edible[].

An edible oil is extracted from the seeds; it is used for cooking[].

Medicinal

A decoction of the bark is taken to treat gonorrhoea, syphilis, dyspepsia, colic and colds[].
Applied externally, the bark decoction is used to treat fever, pain, skin diseases and wounds[]. The crushed and decocted bark is used for cleaning cuts and sores[, ].

The wood contains saponins[].

Other Uses

The broken seed coats are strung together to make rattles[].

The heartwood is reddish brown with dark brown streaks; it is usually distinctly demarcated from the 1 - 3cm wide layer of greyish or brownish sapwood. The grain is straight or sometimes interlocked; somewhat lustrous; texture fine and even. The wood is heavy; durable and resistant to fungi and dry-wood borers, but sometimes there is slight termite attack; resistant to acids, making it suitable for chemical containers and laboratory tables[, ]. It saws easily but slowly, with serious blunting effect on tools due to the high density and the presence of silica. Stellite-tipped sawteeth and tungsten- carbide-tipped cutting tools are recommended. The wood planes fairly easily with a smooth finish. It holds nails and screws well, but pre-boring is needed. The gluing properties are poor to satisfactory. The presence of saponins has been reported for the wood, which contributes to the resistance to fungi[]. The wood is used for heavy construction, heavy-duty flooring, bridges, sluice gates and other waterworks, railway sleepers, stairs, poles, vats, vehicle bodies and quarter-sliced veneer. It is locally used to make canoes and paddles. It is suitable for joinery, marquetry, turnery, interior trim, furniture and cabinet work, sporting goods, toys and novelties, musical instruments, draining boards, agricultural implements, ship and boat building and mine props[, ].

Propagation

Seed - it has a thick and hard seed coat and shows a dormancy of 2.5 - 12 months before germinating. Germination rate may be up to 40%, but is often lower; the germination rate of depulped seeds is lowest, up to 9%. Under experimental nursery conditions, the survival rate of seedlings was 100% after 18 months. Seedlings grow slowly. After germination, growth of aerial parts stops for about 2 months, after which seedlings grow at a rate of 1cm per month, reaching an average height of 25cm after 18 months and 36cm after 29 months[]. The seedlings are shade tolerant, but are classified as non-pioneer light demanders, preferring small gaps in the forest canopy[].
Elephants eat the fruits and are probably the main seed dispersers. It is unknown whether seeds that have passed through elephants’ guts germinate more easily, but seeds that have not been eaten by elephants do germinate although the germination rate is low[].

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