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Prosopis ruscifolia
Fabaceae FAMILY

Prosopis ruscifolia

Prosopis ruscifolia

Edibility
2/5
Medicinal
2/5

Safety & Hazards

None known

Cultivation Details

HabitDeciduous Tree
GrowthFast

A plant of the 'Pantanal' region of S. America, which has an average yearly rainfall of 1,000 - 1,400mm, but is fed by the upper Paraguay River which floods in the wet season, causing large areas to be under water for several months of the year. Its average temperature is 25°c, but this can fluctuate from 0 - 40°c. Requires a sunny position[1]. The plant invades pasture in Argentina, where it is considered to be a serious pest[2]. The plant colonizes open pasture rapidly, forming in its young state dense, spiny, impenetrable thickets[2]. The plant is spread through animals eating the seedpods and then voiding the hard-coated seeds undamaged and able to germinate better as a result of their experience![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[3].

Propagation

Seed - it has a hard seedcoat and may benefit from scarification before sowing 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. Sow the seed in a sunny position in a nursery seedbed. A germination rate of above 50% can be expected, with the seed sprouting within 7 - 14 days[1]. Cite as: Tropical Plants Database, Ken Fern. tropical.theferns.info. 2026-02-20. <tropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php?id=Prosopis+ruscifolia>

Pollinators

Data unavailable

References

  1. [1]Brazilian Trees. Volume 2. 4th Edition. — Lorenzi. H. · Instituto Plantarum De Estudos Da Flora; Brazil. · 2002 · ISBN 85-86714-15-1 ↩︎Information on 350 species of Brazilian trees. Stunning photographs of each species, brief details on the plant, its uses and how to grow it from seed. A superb work, with the minor irritation that the translation from Portuguese is not of the best.
  2. [2]Journal of the Arnold Arboretum Vol. 57 — Harvard University · 1976 · http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org ↩︎A botanical magazine, this issue has a comprehensive treatment of the genus Prosopis as well as several other articles. It can be downloaded from the Internet.
  3. [3]Nodulation Plants in GRIN Taxonomy — United States Department of Agriculture · http://www.ars-grin.gov/~sbmljw/cgi-bin/taxnodul.pl?language=en ↩︎An online database listing plants that have either positive or negative reports on root and stem nodulation with nitrogen-fixing bacteria.
  4. [4]Plantae Diaphoricae Florae Argentinae ó Revista Sistematica de las Plantas medicinales, alimenticias ó de alguna otr — Hieronymus J. · Guillermo Kraft; Buenos Aires · 1882 ↩︎A very old work, but lots of information on the uses of Argentinian plants. It can be downloaded from the internet.
  5. [5]Flore Forestiere Du Globe — Chnacerel L. · Gauthier-Villars et Co.; Paris. · 1920 · http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org ↩︎Written in French, a very detailed work on the timbers of the world. It can be downloaded from the Internet.
  6. [PFAF]Plants for a Future — pfaf.org ↩︎