Common Name:

General Information

Trichanthera gigantea is a shrub or small tree with a dense, rounded crown; usually growing up to 5 metres tall, but exceptionally to 17 metres[, ]. The bole can be 40cm in diameter[]. More or less evergreen, the plant can lose its leaves for a short period in periods of dry weather, regrowing rapidly following rain[, ].
The tree is harvested from the wild for local use as a food, medicine and source of wood. It can be grown as a hedge, as a pioneer when restoring native woodland and to provide shade in coffee plantations.

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

,

Range

S. America - Brazil, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Guyana; C. America - Panama, Costa Rica.

Habitat

Streams and swampy areas and wet forests at low elevations[]. Along roadsides, in clearings, swampy areas, forests and thickets[].

Properties

Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Semi-deciduous Tree
Height	5.00 m
Growth Rate	Fast
Pollinators	Bats, Birds, Ants, Bees
Self-fertile	No
Cultivation Status	Cultivated, Wild

Cultivation Details

A plant of the humid, lowland tropics, where it is found at elevations up to 400 metres. It grows best in areas where annual daytime temperatures are within the range 27 - 33°c, but can tolerate 20 - 38°c[]. The plant can survive temperatures down to about -1°c[]. The plant does not tolerate frost[]. It prefers a mean annual rainfall in the range 1,500 - 3,000mm, but tolerates 1,000 - 5,000mm[].
Growing well in full sun, the plant also has considerable shade tolerance[]. It is well adapted to acid infertile soils[]. Although commonly found on stream banks, the plant requires well-drained soils[]. Prefers a pH in the range 5 - 6.5, tolerating 4.5 - 7[].
A fast-growing plant[].
The vigorous regrowth of the plant under heavy cutting regimes has led to speculation that nitrogen fixation may occur through the action of mycorrhiza or other organisms[]

Edible Uses

Sprouts are eaten in maize porridge[]. This almost certainly refers to the young shoots, since it is very difficult to germinate the seed[].

Medicinal

The plant is a blood tonic and galactagogue. It is used to treat nephritis and to promote the flow of milk in nursing mothers[].
The plant is given to domestic animals, it is used to treat colic and hernia in horses, and retained placenta in cows[].

Agroforestry Uses:

The plant is used as a hedge or living fence; as a shade tree in coffee plantations; and to prevent stream bank erosion[].
The plant can be grown in association with a range of over-story agroforestry species due to its shade tolerance. It has been grown underneath bananas, Leucaena and Gliricidias[].
A fast-growing plant, it can be used as a pioneer species when restoring naive woodland[].

Other Uses

The wood is cream-coloured or pale brown, with no sharp distinction between the sapwood and heartwood. It has a slightly foetid odour, but no distinctive taste; is straight-or wavy-grained; coarse-textured; light in weight and rather soft, but strong for its weight[]. It requires a sharp knife to cut smoothly across the grain; stains readily in drying[]. Of low quality, it is only suitable for making light packing boxes or similar unfinished products[].
The wood is used for fuel and to make charcoal[].

Propagation

Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in a partially shaded position in a nursery seedbed[]. Germination rates are very poor, generally 0 - 2%[, ], with the seed sprouting within 25 - 35 days[]. Seedlings are usually ready to be planted out about 6 months after germination[].
Stem cuttings will readily form roots in full sun or in light shade[]. Cuttings 2.2 - 2.8mm in diameter, 20cm long and with at least 2 leaf buds are the most effective in striking roots, with a success rate of 92%[]. Larger stem cuttings that are more than 1 metre long and 2cm in diameter can also be used in order to quickly produce a living fence[].
Stems that contact the ground, either through bending or breakage, will root at the nodes to form new plants[].

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