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Useful Tropical Plants

Dypsis basilonga

(Jum. & H.Perrier) Beentje & J.Dransf.

Arecaceae

+ Synonyms

Neodypsis basilonga Jum. & H.Perrier

Common Name:

Dypsis basilonga
Drawing of the leaf. flowers and fruit
Photograph by: Flore de Madagascar et des Comores, Palmiers, vol. 30: Palmiers, p. 147 (1945)
Creative Commons License

General Information

Dypsis basilongais a solitary stemmed evergreen palm growing 4- 6 metres tall. The unbranched stem can be 12cm in diameter, topped by a crown of leaves.
The plant is harvested from the wild for local use as a food and medicine.
This species has a small population, with fewer than 30 mature individuals known from the entire distribution range. Harvesting for its edible heart and collection of its seed for the horticultural trade are the main threats, but the habitat at one of the sites is also under pressure from expanding agricultural activities. The plant is classified as 'Critically Endangered' in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species(2011)[
338
Title
IUCN Red List of Threatened Species
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.iucnredlist.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
A list of plants under threat and facing possible extinction, usually with brief details of the threats and information on habitat.
].

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

455
Title
Flore de Madagascar et des Comores
Publication
 
Author
Humbert H.
Website
http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/
Publisher
Museum National D'Histoire Naturelle; Paris
Year
1946 - 1984
ISBN
 
Description
Written in French, an excellent flora of the area though it has not been completed. Available for download from the Internet.

Range

Africa - eastern Madagascar.

Habitat

Flat topped mountains on gneiss rocks where moss is abundant, indicating high humidity levels. Found at elevations from 300 - 1,000 metres[
338
Title
IUCN Red List of Threatened Species
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.iucnredlist.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
A list of plants under threat and facing possible extinction, usually with brief details of the threats and information on habitat.
].

Properties

Conservation StatusCritically Endangered
Edibility Rating *  *  *
Medicinal Rating *  *
HabitEvergreen Tree
Height5.00 m
Cultivation StatusWild

Cultivation Details

Not known

Edible Uses

Leaves - cooked. The palm heart (apical bud) is reported to be an excellent vegetable[
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.
]. Harvesting this heart leads to the death of the plant since it is unable to produce side shoots[
K
Title
Plants for a Future
Author
Ken Fern
Description
Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.
].

Medicinal

The plant (parts not specified but probably the bark and/or the fruits) is used in the treatment of headaches, jaundice and hepatitis; and also as an aid to lactation[
547
Title
Assessing Ethnobotanical Knowledge and Resources, Lokaro Reserve, SE Madagascar
Publication
 
Author
Lehman A.D.
Publisher
 
Year
2009
ISBN
 
Description
A thesis, in PDF format, by Ashley Davis Lehman of the University of Montana, Missoula, MT.
].

Other Uses

None known

Propagation

Seed -
Cite as: Tropical Plants Database, Ken Fern. tropical.theferns.info. 2024-03-29. <tropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php?id=Dypsis+basilonga>

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