Common Name:

General Information

Petersianthus macrocarpus is an evergreen tree with a well-developed crown; it can grow up to 50 metres tall. The straight, cylindrical bole can be more than 100cm in diameter[, ].
The tree is harvested from the wild for local use as a medicine and source of wood - the wood is also traded. The tree has potential for use as a pioneer species for restoring native woodland.

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

Range

Tropical Africa - Guinea to Cameroon and southern Central African Republic, south to northern Angola and DR Congo.

Habitat

Rain-forest; in some places the dominating species; invasive in secondary forests; at elevations up to 200 metres[].

Properties

Medicinal Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Evergreen Tree
Height	45.00 m
Cultivation Status	Wild

Cultivation Details

The tree smells strongly of rotten cabbage[].

Edible Uses

None known

Medicinal

The bark is abortifacient, anodyne, ecbolic, emetic, laxative. It is used in the treatment of arthritis, rheumatism, heart conditions etc[].

The stems are used to help prevent the loss of a foetus[].

The stem bark is used in the treatment of pulmonary troubles[].

Agroforestry Uses:

The tree is said to be invasive in secondary forests. This suggests that it has the potential to be used as a pioneer species when restoring native woodland - information on growth rates is required[].

Other Uses

The heartwood is a yellowish-pink to red-brown with a variable aspect; it is clearly demarcated from the 8 - 10cm wide band of sapwood. The texture is medium; the grain interlocked, sometimes straight or wavy; the green wood has an unpleasant odour like rotten cabbage. The wood is moderately heavy to heavy; moderately hard; moderately durable, being resistant to dry wood borers but only moderately resistant to fungi and termites. It seasons slowly, with a high risk of checking and distortion; once dry it is moderately to poorly stable in service. Stellite tipped and tungsten carbide tools are recommended because of the interlocked grain; care needs to be taken when planing to avoid tearing; nailing and screwing are good, but require pre-boring; gluing is poor. The wood is used for heavy carpentry and vehicle or container flooring. Mottled, striated, veined or moiré wood are in great demand for decorative sliced veneer[].

Propagation

Seed -

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