Common Name:

General Information

Cassia abbreviata is a deciduous shrub or small tree with a medium round canopy; it usually grows up to 10 metres tall, occasionally to 15 metres[, ]. The bole is usually slender and erect303, [].
A very popular traditional remedy within its native range, where the plant is commonly harvested from the wild and often sold in local markets. The plant is also a source of wood and tannins. A decoction of the roots was formerly produced commercially and sold in southern Africa as a cure for blackwater fever and schistosomiasis[]. A very useful ornamental shrub with beautiful flowers[].
The enormous demand for roots and bark, coupled with the destructive manner in which it is harvested, mean that the wild populations are being depleted at a high rate. Protection measures and domestication are required urgently[].

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

Range

East Africa - Somalia, Kenya, Tanzania, southeast DR Congo, Zambia, Malawi, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Swaziland, northern S. Africa.

Habitat

The plant commonly occurs in Acacia - Commiphora bushland and also in woodland and wooded grassland. It is usually found on termite mounds and clayey soils[]. Found at elevations of 650 - 1,000 metres in the south of its range[].

Properties

Medicinal Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Deciduous Tree
Height	8.00 m
Growth Rate	Medium
Cultivation Status	Ornamental, Wild

Cultivation Details

A plant of the seasonal tropics, where it can be found at elevations up to 1,000 metres[]. It grows in areas where the mean annual rainfall is around 1,400mm[]. It can withstand moderate frost according to some reports[, ], whilst another says that it is frost tender[].
Prefers a sunny position in a deep sandy and well drained soil[]. Established plants are drought tolerant[, ].
A moderately fast growing plant[]. Relatively slow-growing[].
The plant can be pollarded or coppiced[].
The flowers are highly appreciated as bee forage[].
Cassia abbreviata does not form nitrogen-fixing root nodules, yet it has a high nitrogen content in its leaves. It has been suggested that it may fix atmospheric nitrogen in a different way, in symbiosis with ectomycorrhizas[].

Edible Uses

None known

Medicinal

A very popular traditional medicine in eastern Africa, the plant has been used as a remedy for many ailments[].

The leaves are smoked as a treatment for haematuria[].

The smoke of smouldering twigs is inhaled to cure headache[, ].

The powdered stem bark is applied to abscesses and added to food to cure diarrhoea. A decoction of the stem bark is used as a purgative and to cure malaria and diarrhoea[].

The roots are abortifacient, aphrodisiac, purgative, stomachic and vermifuge[]. A decoction, or the dried powdered roots in water, is drunk as a treatment of gastrointestinal disorders, stomach-ache, bilharzia, venereal diseases, pneumonia, uterus complaints, heavy menstruation and snakebites[]. Malaria (including blackwater fever) is also treated with extracts from the roots[].
A root infusion is kept in the mouth, or the roots are chewed and swallowed, in order to relieve toothache. A water extract of the roots is used as an eyewash to cure ophthalmia[].

The seed is used as a tonic[, ].

A number of anthraquinones, triterpenoids, flavanol derivatives and organic acids have been isolated from the root bark, stem bark, leaves and flowers[].
Extracts of both roots and leaves have shown high antiplasmodial activity in vitro[].
Methanol, acetone and water extracts of the stem bark have shown significant inhibition against a number of gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria[].

Agroforestry Uses:

Cassia abbreviata is a deep-rooting tree and is important in soil conservation and as a shade tree[, ].
The plant has potential for intercropping as it roots deeply and probably causes only limited competition with crops for nutrients and water[].

Other Uses

The stem bark is used for tanning and dyeing[].

The smell of the crushed leaves is said to drive snakes from their holes[].

The wood is heavy and dark brown. The heartwood has a coarse texture and shows pale blotches[]. The wood is used to make furniture, pestles and joinery. It is termite resistant and therefore the poles are preferred for house construction[].
The wood is used for fuel and is also a useful source of 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. Treated seeds germinate 4 - 10 days after sowing. They are sown in a sand-compost mixture (1:1) and should be kept warm and moist. The seedlings quickly develop a tap root and so it is better not to use seeding trays, but to sow directly into polythene bags or into the ground[].

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