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Useful Tropical Plants

Pouteria alnifolia

(Baker) Roberty

Sapotaceae

+ Synonyms

Chrysophyllum alnifolium Baker

Chrysophyllum ferrugineotomentosum Engl.

Malacantha acutifolia A.Chev.

Malacantha alnifolia (Baker) Pierre

Malacantha centralis A.Chev.

Malacantha ferrugineotomentosa (Engl.) Engl.

Malacantha heudelotiana Pierre

Malacantha obtuse C.H.Wright

Malacantha sacleuxii Lecomte

Malacantha warneckeana Engl.

Common Name:

Pouteria alnifolia
Trunk of the tree
Photograph by: Philippe Birnbaum; African plants - A Photo Guide
© Philippe Birnbaum
Pouteria alnifolia Pouteria alnifolia Pouteria alnifolia Pouteria alnifolia Pouteria alnifolia

General Information

Pouteria alnifolia is a deciduous tree growing up to 25 metres tall. The bole, which is up to 70cm in diameter, is often twisted and fluted, with small buttresses at the base[
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.
,
398
Title
Edible Wild Plants of Tanzania
Publication
 
Author
Ruffo, C.K.: Birnie, A. & Tengnas, B.
Publisher
Regional Land Management Unit; Nairobi.
Year
2002
ISBN
9966-896-60-0
Description
A very well presented, simple guide to growing and utilizing wild food plants in Tanzania, with line drawings of each plant, a description, habitat and range, non-food as well as food uses, plus basic information on growing the plants.
].
The tree is harvested from the wild for local use as a source of food, medicines and wood. It can be grown as a pioneer species to re-establish woodland.

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References


Range

Tropical Africa - drier areas from Senegal to Sudan, Kenya, Tanzania and Mozambique.

Habitat

Dry forest and gallery forest, often in the transition zone between savannah and forest, and also in disturbed forest. It is often found on rocky sites[
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 *  *
Medicinal Rating *  *
Other Uses Rating *  *
HabitDeciduous Tree
Height20.00 m
Cultivation StatusWild

Cultivation Details



The tree can be coppiced[
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.
].

Edible Uses

Fruit - raw[
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.
,
398
Title
Edible Wild Plants of Tanzania
Publication
 
Author
Ruffo, C.K.: Birnie, A. & Tengnas, B.
Publisher
Regional Land Management Unit; Nairobi.
Year
2002
ISBN
9966-896-60-0
Description
A very well presented, simple guide to growing and utilizing wild food plants in Tanzania, with line drawings of each plant, a description, habitat and range, non-food as well as food uses, plus basic information on growing the plants.
]. The pulp of ripe fruits has a sweet flavour[
398
Title
Edible Wild Plants of Tanzania
Publication
 
Author
Ruffo, C.K.: Birnie, A. & Tengnas, B.
Publisher
Regional Land Management Unit; Nairobi.
Year
2002
ISBN
9966-896-60-0
Description
A very well presented, simple guide to growing and utilizing wild food plants in Tanzania, with line drawings of each plant, a description, habitat and range, non-food as well as food uses, plus basic information on growing the plants.
]. The fruit is a red, globose to ellipsoid berry 15 - 25mm long, containing a single seed up to 20mm long[
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.
].

An oil obtained from the seed is used for cooking[
398
Title
Edible Wild Plants of Tanzania
Publication
 
Author
Ruffo, C.K.: Birnie, A. & Tengnas, B.
Publisher
Regional Land Management Unit; Nairobi.
Year
2002
ISBN
9966-896-60-0
Description
A very well presented, simple guide to growing and utilizing wild food plants in Tanzania, with line drawings of each plant, a description, habitat and range, non-food as well as food uses, plus basic information on growing the plants.
]. The seeds are pounded, boiled, the liquid filtered off and cooled; the oil which floats to the top of the pot is then skimmed off[
398
Title
Edible Wild Plants of Tanzania
Publication
 
Author
Ruffo, C.K.: Birnie, A. & Tengnas, B.
Publisher
Regional Land Management Unit; Nairobi.
Year
2002
ISBN
9966-896-60-0
Description
A very well presented, simple guide to growing and utilizing wild food plants in Tanzania, with line drawings of each plant, a description, habitat and range, non-food as well as food uses, plus basic information on growing the plants.
].

The leaves are used as food wrappers[
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.
].

Medicinal

The leaves are applied externally to treat yaws, wounds and conjunctivitis[
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 pulped bark is administered in embrocations to treat rheumatism and as an enema to treat diarrhoea in children[
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.
].

Agroforestry Uses:

The plant is a pioneer species in its native range. It tolerates fire and regenerates abundantly in regularly burned forest, where it is often more common than in unburned forest[
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.
].
Vegetation communities in which this plant plays an important role are considered an indicator of sites with great potential for growing teak[
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.
].

Other Uses

The heartwood is yellowish white and not clearly demarcated from the sapwood. The wood is fairly hard, durable and resistant to termites. It is used locally for construction, implements, walking sticks and canoes[
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 wood is used for fuel and to make charcoal[
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.
,
364
Title
Field Guide to the Moist Forest Trees of Tanzania.
Publication
 
Author
Lovett J.C.; Ruffo C.K.; Gereau R.E.; Taplin J.R.D
Website
http://www.york.ac.uk/res/celp/webpages/projects/ecology/tree%20guide/introduction.htm
Publisher
Frontier
Year
0
ISBN
1-873070-33-0
Description
A lovely little book giving a basic identification guide to more than 650 species of trees growing in Tanzania. It is also available to view on the internet.
,
398
Title
Edible Wild Plants of Tanzania
Publication
 
Author
Ruffo, C.K.: Birnie, A. & Tengnas, B.
Publisher
Regional Land Management Unit; Nairobi.
Year
2002
ISBN
9966-896-60-0
Description
A very well presented, simple guide to growing and utilizing wild food plants in Tanzania, with line drawings of each plant, a description, habitat and range, non-food as well as food uses, plus basic information on growing the plants.
].
We do not have any more information on the wood of this species. However, we have a general description of the wood for the African members of this genus, which is as follows:-
The heartwood is yellowish-white, pale brown, or pinkish-brown, darkening slightly after exposure; it is not clearly demarcated from the sapwood. The texture is medium to coarse; the grain usually straight, sometimes wavy; lustrous; there is a faint cedarlike odour. The wood is perishable, with little resistance to attack by decay fungi and termites, and is also liable to blue stain. It seasons well without degrade. It is generally reported to saw and machine well, but some species are silicious and have a blunting effect on cutters; it is rather difficult to finish; cuts well on rotary lathes or slicers. It is used for purposes such as general carpentry, joinery, veneer and plywood, furniture components[
316
Title
Tropical Timbers of the World. Ag. Handbook No. 607.
Publication
 
Author
Chudnoff. Martin.
Publisher
USDA Forest Service. Wisconsin.
Year
1984
ISBN
 
Description
Terse details on the properties of the wood of almost 400 species of trees from the Tropics.
].

Propagation

Seed -
Cite as: Tropical Plants Database, Ken Fern. tropical.theferns.info. 2024-11-10. <tropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php?id=Pouteria+alnifolia>

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