PlantPeers
Back to Catalog
Acacia mangium
Fabaceae FAMILY

Acacia mangium

Acacia mangium

Edibility
2/5
Medicinal
2/5

Safety & Hazards

The seed of many Acacia species, including this one, is edible and highly nutritious, and can be eaten safely as a fairly major part of the diet. Not all species are edible, however, and some can contain moderate levels of toxins[1]. Especially when harvesting from the wild, especial care should be taken to ensure correct identification of any plants harvested for food[PFAF]. Especially in times of drought, many Acacia species can concentrate high levels of the toxin Hydrogen cyanide in their foliage, making them dangerous for herbivores to eat.

Cultivation Details

HabitEvergreen Tree
GrowthFast

A plant of the warm humid tropics, it is found at elevations up to 800 metres in areas where the mean annual rainfall is in the range of 1,500 - 3,000mm[2]. It can tolerate a mean annual rainfall of 1,000 - 4,500 mm[3]. Although it survives long dry seasons, growth is greatly reduced[3]. Plants do not tolerate frost[4]. Succeeds in a wide variety of soil types, usually being found in acid soils of medium-to-low fertility[2]. Prefers a well-drained soil, but succeeds in poorly drained conditions[4, 2]. Prefers a pH in the range 4.5 - 6.5, soils with a high pH are not tolerated[4, 2]. Requires a sunny position[4]. Widely planted in the humid tropics, it has escaped from cultivation in many areas and is viewed as a possible threat to local ecosystems[5]. A fast-growing tree, in some plantations it can increase in height by 1.5 - 5 metres per year for each of the first 3 years, before the rate of growth decreases[2]. In other plantations annual height increases of 1 - 2 metres and 1 - 3 cm of diameter growth per year are more usually obtained[2]. Trees can reach a height of 23 metres, with a bole 23cm in diameter, within 9 years from seed[6]. The tree flowers precociously, and viable seed can be harvested 24 months after planting[7]. From the onset of flower buds to pod maturity is about 6 - 7 months[7]. Regeneration through coppicing or pollarding is poor[7]. A short-lived tree, usually dying after 30 - 50 years[4]. This species has a symbiotic relationship with certain soil bacteria, these bacteria form nodules on the roots and fix atmospheric nitrogen. Some of this nitrogen is utilized by the growing plant but some can also be used by other plants growing nearby[8].

Propagation

Seed - pre-treatment is necessary to break the hard seed coat. To encourage uniform germination, seed should be scarified either by submerging in boiled water that is allowed to cool for 24 hours, or by soaking in sulphuric acid for 10-30 minutes followed by soaking in cool water for 24 hours[7]. The visibly swollen seeds should be sown immediately[7]. Germination, which is normally around 60 - 80&, usually starts after one day and continues for 10 - 15 days[2]. Young seedlings are potted up when large enough to handle, and can be planted out when 25cm tall, usually after about 16 weeks[2]. The seed can retain its viability for several years when stored at room temperature in a dark place in a sealed container[4]. Air-layering. Single-node stem cuttings 4 - 5 cm long and 0.5 - 1.5 cm in diameter, leaving 0.5 - 1 phyllodes[7]. The application of indole-butyric acid or rooting powder enables 65-75% rooting; rooting is reported to be slow[7]. Grafting Cite as: Tropical Plants Database, Ken Fern. tropical.theferns.info. 2026-02-19. <tropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php?id=Acacia+mangium>

Pollinators

Insects

References

  1. [1]Acacia in Australia: Ethnobotany and Potential Food Crop — Lister P.R.; Holford P.; Haigh T.; Morrison D.A. · ASHS Press, Alexandria, VA. · 1996 · https://hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/proceedings1996/v3-toc.html · ISBN 0-9615027-3-8 ↩︎
  2. [2]Tropical Tree Seed Manual — Vosso. J. Editor. · USDA Forest Service. · 2002 · http://www.rngr.net/Publications/ttsm ↩︎An extremely good guide, it can also be downloaded in its entirety from the address shown above.
  3. [3]Trees Commonly Cultivated in SE Asia — Jensen. M. · FAO Regional Office, Bangkok. · 1999 · ISBN 974-89377-5-5 ↩︎
  4. [4]Seed Leaflets — Various · Forest & Landscape. Denmark · http://en.sl.life.ku.dk/Publikationer/Udgivelser/PopulaerPublikationer.aspx?katid={D28373CC-6EF3-4EF8-B097-6D83FABF209E}&serieid={9F1C3DB1-6E7B-4CF1-AF53-F480B0CB40EF}&sort=title ↩︎A series of leaflets, jointly produced by the University of Copenhagen and the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew, focussing on seed information for a number species, but also giving a lot of other information about each plant.
  5. [5]Global Invasive Species Database — http://www.issg.org/database/welcome/ ↩︎Very detailed information on almost 400 species (with more being added) of plants that have become weeds in areas outside their native range.
  6. [6]Flora Malesiana Series 1 — Various · Nationaal Herbarium Nederiand, Universiteit Leiden branch · http://www.archive.org ↩︎A massive treatment of the plants of the Malaysian Archipelago. Much of it has been made available to download from the Internet
  7. [7]World Agroforesty Centre — http://www.worldagroforestry.org/ ↩︎An excellent online database of a huge range of trees giving very good information on each plant - its uses, ecology, identity, propagation, pests etc.
  8. [8]The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. — Huxley. A. · MacMillan Press · 1992 · ISBN 0-333-47494-5 ↩︎Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
  9. [9]Australian Native Plants Society — http://anpsa.org.au/index.html ↩︎A series of fact sheets on Australian plants. Good photographs, brief description and information on uses, habitat, range, cultivation etc.
  10. [10]The Useful Native Plants of Australia. — Maiden J.H. · Turner & Co.; London. · 1889 · http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org ↩︎Terse details of the uses of many Australian plants and other species naturalised, or at least growing, in Australia. It can be downloaded from the Internet.
  11. [11]Tropix 7 — CIRAD · http://tropix.cirad.fr/en ↩︎An on-line guide to the timbers of 245 species of trees.
  12. [PFAF]Plants for a Future — pfaf.org ↩︎