Parkia biglobosa

Botanical Description

African locust bean is a deciduous tree with a dense, wide, spreading and umbrella-shaped crown consisting of heavy branches; it can grow from 7 - 20 metres, with exceptional specimens to 30 metres[ 303 Title World Agroforesty Centre Publication Author Website http://www.worldagroforestry.org/ Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description An excellent online database of a huge range of trees giving very good information on each plant - its uses, ecology, identity, propagation, pests etc. ]. The usually straight and cylindrical bole is often short, with branches produced low down; it can be up to 130cm in diameter. A taproot is often present, with lateral roots spreading up to 10 metres, occasionally 20 metres, from the bole[ 299 Title Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa. Publication Author Website http://www.prota.org Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa. , 303 Title World Agroforesty Centre Publication Author Website http://www.worldagroforestry.org/ Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description An excellent online database of a huge range of trees giving very good information on each plant - its uses, ecology, identity, propagation, pests etc. ]. African locust bean is a very important, multi-purpose tree, it is commonly gathered from the wild for local use as food, medicine and to provide a wide range of commodities. The tree is often planted in and around villages for its many uses, whilst it has also become widely planted in Agroforestry systems throughout the tropics, where it provides shade and shelter for the other crops[ 317 Title Mansfeld's Database of Agricultural and Horticultural Plants Publication Author Website http://mansfeld.ipk-gatersleben.de/pls/htmldb_pgrc/f?p=185:3:4292127278597336 Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description Terse details of a huge range of useful plants. ].