Prosopis velutina

Botanical Description

Prosopis velutina is a spiny, deciduous tree with a spreading, rounded crown; it can grow up to 15 metres tall. The bole is short[ 491 Title Journal of the Arnold Arboretum Vol. 57 Publication Author Website http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org Publisher Harvard University Year 1976 ISBN Description 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. ]. The plant is harvested from the wild for local use as a food, medicine and source of materials. It is cultivated as a source of fuel in arid areas. Prosopis velutina has been widely introduced and planted as a fuel and fodder tree. The seed are spread widely by grazing animals either from established plantations or from single trees around houses or water-holes, and will persist for long periods in the seed bank. The plant has shown itself to be a very aggressive invader, especially in arid and semi-arid natural grasslands, both in the native range and where introduced. Invasion in the native range generally involves an increase in plant density rather than an increase in its range. It is a declared noxious weed in Australia and South Africa, and the genus as a whole is regulated in several other countries[ 1093 Title Invasive Species Compendium Publication Author Website http://www.cabi.org Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description An immense resource - in depth information on over 900 species of invasive plants (it also has information on animals, fungi etc). ].