Malvaceae FAMILY Least Concern

Sterculia tragacantha

Edibility

2/5

Medicinal

2/5

Safety & Hazards

None known

Botanical Description

Sterculia tragacantha is sometimes a deciduous shrub growing 5 - 12 metres tall, but more often it becomes a tree up to 25 metres tall with exceptional specimens to 40 metres. The crown tends to be fairly small and sparsely branched[ 307 Title Tropical and Subtropical Trees - A Worldwide Encyclopaedic Guide. Publication Author Barwick. M. Publisher Thames & Hudson, London Year 2004 ISBN 0-500-51181-0 Description A superb book, very concise and well written, giving a wealth of information on 400 or more species including descriptions, habitat, cultivation details and plant uses. A wealth of colour photographs bring each plant vividly to life. ]. The bole, which sometimes has winged buttresses, can be 75cm in diameter and unbranched for up to 18 metres[ 328 Title African Flowering Plants Database Publication Author Website http://www.ville-ge.ch/musinfo/bd/cjb/africa/recherche.php Publisher Conservatoire et Jardin Botaniques. Year 0 ISBN Description Contains information on over 150,000 plant names (including synonyms) giving a description and habitat, plus a distribution map. ]. The tree is valued especially for the gum obtained from its trunk, which has a range of applications. The young leaves are sometimes an important local food[ 617 Title Traditional Vegetables in Benin Publication Author Achigan-Dako E. Et al Publisher Darwin Initiative; International Foundation for Science Year 2009 ISBN Description Issued as a PDF on the Internet, it contains basic information on over 250 species of plants used for food in Benin. ]. Sterculia tragacantha has a very wide distribution, large population, is not currently experiencing any major threats and no significant future threats have been identified. The plant is classified as 'Least Concern' in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species(2018)[ 338 Title IUCN Red List of Threatened Species Publication Author Website http://www.iucnredlist.org/ Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description A list of plants under threat and facing possible extinction, usually with brief details of the threats and information on habitat. ].

Habitat & Origin

Origintropical

Native RangeTropical Africa - Sierra Leone to DR Congo, south to Angola, Zambia and Tanzania.

HabitatMangrove; open and drier parts of rain and swampy forests; secondary and transition forests; gallery forest; wooded savannah; at elevations from near sea level to about 1,500 metres[ 328 Title African Flowering Plants Database Publication Author Website http://www.ville-ge.ch/musinfo/bd/cjb/africa/recherche.php Publisher Conservatoire et Jardin Botaniques. Year 0 ISBN Description Contains information on over 150,000 plant names (including synonyms) giving a description and habitat, plus a distribution map. ]. Often found in groups at forest edges[ 484 Title West African Forests and Forestry Publication Author Unwin A.H. Website http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org Publisher T. Fisher Unwin Ltd.; London Year 1920 ISBN Description Quite extensive information on some of the trees of West Africa. The book can be downloaded from the Internet ].