Dypsis ligulata
(Jum.) Beentje & J.Dransf.
Arecaceae
Common Name:
General Information
Dypsis ligulata is a single-stemmed evergreen palm growing 4 - 8 metres tall. The unbranched stem can be 15cm or more in diameter, topped by a crown of leaves.
The plant is harvested from the wild for local use as a food and medicine.
There is insufficient data to assess the status of this species. It has not been seen in the wild since 1923 and the humid forest at Ambilobe has not been well surveyed. The plant is classified as 'Data Deficient' 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 - northwestern Madagascar.
Habitat
Presumably occurs in humid forest on sandstone in the Sambirano region, at elevations around 100 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 Status | Data Deficient |
| Edibility Rating |  |
| Medicinal Rating |  |
| Habit | Evergreen Tree |
| Height | 6.00 m |
| Cultivation Status | Wild |
Cultivation Details
Not known
Edible Uses
Leaves - cooked[
]. The apical bud, known as a 'palm heart', is eaten as a vegetable[
]. Eating this bud leads to the death of the plant because it is unable to make 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 -
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Useful Tropical Plants Database 2014 by
Ken Fern,
web interface by
Ajna Fern
with help from
Richard Morris.
