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Useful Tropical Plants

Dacryodes pubescens

(Vermoesen) H.J.Lam

Burseraceae

+ Synonyms

Pachylobus gossweileri Exell

Pachylobus pubescens Vermoesen

Common Name:

No Image.

General Information

Dacryodes pubescens is an evergreen tree with a wide, spreading, hemispherical crown, that can grow up to 37 metres tall. The bole, which is often sinuous, is up to 150cm in diameter[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].
The tree is harvested from the wild for local use as a food and source of wood and resin. The wood is also harvested commercially and exported.

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References


Range

West tropical Africa - ?Gabon, Congo, DR Congo, northern Angola.

Habitat

Lowland rainforest and along rivers, sometimes under inundated conditions[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].

Properties

Edibility Rating *  *
Other Uses Rating *  *  *
HabitEvergreen Tree
Height30.00 m
Self-fertileNo
Cultivation StatusWild

Cultivation Details



A dioecious species, both male and female forms need to be grown if fruit and seed are required.

Edible Uses

Fruit - cooked[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
]. The fruit is an obovoid drupe 20 - 30mm long and 15mm wide[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
]. I'm not sure that the report of the fruit being cooked is fully accurate, since boiling is said to harden the flesh. Instead, it is probably treated as below[
K
Title
Plants for a Future
Author
Ken Fern
Description
Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.
].
The flesh of the fruits in this genus usually adheres very strongly to the seed. When placed in hot (but not boiling) water at around 60 - 85°c the fruit softens and swells and all the flesh then slides easily off the seed[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
,
301
Title
Cornucopia II
Publication
 
Author
Facciola. S.
Publisher
Kampong Publications, California.
Year
1998
ISBN
0-9628087-2-5
Description
The second edition of an excellent guide to the edible uses of plants, though it does not give any details of cultivation etc.
].

Medicinal

None known

Other Uses

The inner bark exudes a colourless fragrant resin when cut. The resin has been used for torches[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].

The heartwood is a light brown; it is not clearly demarcated from the 7 - 15cm wide band of pale pink, yellow or grey sapwood, which often extends over half the radius of the log. The grain is straight or interlocked; texture is medium; the wood is lustrous, and ribbon-like markings and small stripes give it an attractive figure. The wood is of moderate weight, moderately hard to hard; not very durable, being susceptible to attack by fungi and dry wood borers, but resistant to termites. It seasons normally, with only a slight risk of distortion but a high risk of checking; once dry it is moderately stable in service. It saws slowly and with some difficulty, with a blunting effect on tools; the use of stellite-tipped saw teeth and tungsten carbide tools is recommended; it works fairly well with hand and machine tools, but rough patches may be produced on planing; it does not split on nailing and holds nails and screws well; peeling characteristics are good, and gluing, boring and sanding properties satisfactory; the wood paints and varnishes well. It is recommended for furniture, screens, door and window frames, stairs and other light carpentry, flooring, construction, vehicle bodies, mine props, poles and piles. It is also considered suitable for ship and boat building, tool handles, agricultural implements, joinery, vats, toys, novelties, turnery, railway sleepers, veneer, core stock, hardboard and particle board[299; 848].

Propagation

Seed -
Cite as: Tropical Plants Database, Ken Fern. tropical.theferns.info. 2024-12-13. <tropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php?id=Dacryodes+pubescens>

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