Albizia versicolor
Albizia versicolor
Safety & Hazards
The wood dust may cause serious irritation to the nose and throat[1]. The pods and seeds are poisonous to livestock; young pods are the most toxic, but livestock is more often poisoned as a result of eating fallen pods. Cattle, sheep and goats may develop hypersensitivity, intermittent convulsions and high temperature, and may die from heart failure, but most animals recover without treatment[1]. The disease is called albiziosis, and is caused by the presence of methylpyridoxine. Treatment of poisoned sheep with pyridoxine hydrochloride resulted in recovery[1].
Cultivation Details
Prefers well-drained soils with a high water table[1]. The growth rate of trees is moderate[1]. Trees can be coppiced and pollarded[1, 2]. 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[1].
Propagation
Seed - when sown fresh it does not require any pre-treatment. However, as it matures the seed develops a hard seedcoat and may benefit from scarification before sowing in order to speed up germination. This can usually be done by pouring a small amount of nearly boiling water on the seeds (being careful not to cook them!) and then soaking them for 12 - 24 hours in warm water. By this time they should have imbibed moisture and swollen - if they have not, then carefully make a nick in the seedcoat (being careful not to damage the embryo) and soak for a further 12 hours before sowing. Germination of fresh or treated seed is usually good, with up to 90% of the seed sprouting within 30 days[1]. The seed can be stored for long periods when kept under dry and insect-free conditions[1]. Propagation by cuttings and root suckers has been successful[1]. Cite as: Tropical Plants Database, Ken Fern. tropical.theferns.info. 2026-02-19. <tropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php?id=Albizia+versicolor>
Pollinators
Bees
References
- [1]Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa. — http://www.prota.org ↩︎An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
- [2]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.
- [3]African Flowering Plants Database — Conservatoire et Jardin Botaniques. · http://www.ville-ge.ch/musinfo/bd/cjb/africa/recherche.php ↩︎Contains information on over 150,000 plant names (including synonyms) giving a description and habitat, plus a distribution map.