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Fabaceae FAMILY

Vachellia hockii

Vachellia hockii

Edibility
2/5
Medicinal
2/5

Safety & Hazards

Especially in times of drought, many Acacia species can concentrate high levels of the toxin Hydrogen cyanide in their foliage, making them dangerous for herbivores to eat.

Cultivation Details

HabitShrub
Growth—

Vachellia hockii is a tropical species, preferring moist savannah regions with a mean annual rainfall within the range 430 - 860mm, and so is generally absent in the true Sahelian zone and other drier savannahs where other Acacia species generally dominate. It can tolerate very high temperatures but is intolerant of frost[1]. Requires a sunny position in a well-drained soil. Succeeds in a wide range of soils, including saline soils, and is tolerant of poor soils[1]. 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.

Propagation

Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in a sunny position[2]. Stored seed should be scarified, pre-soaked for 12 hours in warm water and then sown. The seed germinates in 3 - 4 weeks at 25°c[3]. Plants quickly produce a long taproot and are resentful of disturbance - they should be planted out into their permanent positions as soon as possible[4]. Cuttings of half-ripe wood with a heel in a frame[5]. Fair percentage[5]. Cite as: Tropical Plants Database, Ken Fern. tropical.theferns.info. 2026-02-20. <tropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php?id=Vachellia+hockii>

Pollinators

Insects

References

  1. [1]Invasive Species Compendium — http://www.cabi.org ↩︎An immense resource - in depth information on over 900 species of invasive plants (it also has information on animals, fungi etc).
  2. [2]RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 — F. Chittendon. · Oxford University Press · 1951 · ISBN - ↩︎Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaced in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [ 200 ]).
  3. [3]Growing from Seed. Volume 1. — Rice. G. (Editor) · Thompson and Morgan. · 1987 · ISBN - ↩︎Very readable magazine with lots of information on propagation.
  4. [4]Encyclopaedia of Herbs and their Uses. — Bown. D. · Dorling Kindersley, London. · 1995 · ISBN 0-7513-020-31 ↩︎A very well presented and informative book on herbs from around the globe. Plenty in it for both the casual reader and the serious student. Just one main quibble is the silly way of having two separate entries for each plant.
  5. [5]Propagation of Trees, Shrubs and Conifers. — Sheat. W. G. · MacMillan and Co · 1948 · ISBN - ↩︎A bit dated but a good book on propagation techniques with specific details for a wide range of plants.
  6. [6]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.
  7. [7]Traditional Food Plants of Kenya — Patrick M Maundu · Kenya Resource Centre for Indigenous Knowledge, National Museums · 1999 · ISBN 9966986146 ↩︎A concise guide to the edible plants of Kenya
  8. [8]The Useful Plants of West Tropical Africa. — Burkil. H. M. · Royal Botanic Gardens; Kew. · 1985 - 2004 ↩︎Brief descriptions and details of the uses of over 4,000 plants. A superb, if terse, resource, it is also available electronically on the Web - see http://www.aluka.org/