Dialium guineense

(Redirected from Codarium acutifolium)

Dialium guineense, the velvet tamarind,[3] is a tall, tropical, fruit-bearing tree in the family Fabaceae. It has small, typically grape-sized, edible fruits with brown, hard, inedible shells.

Dialium guineense
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Fabales
Family: Fabaceae
Genus: Dialium
Species:
D. guineense
Binomial name
Dialium guineense
Synonyms[2]
  • Codarium acutifolium Afzel.
  • Codarium discolor DC.
  • Codarium nitidum Sol. ex Vahl
  • Codarium obtusifolium Afzel.
  • Codarium solanderi Vahl
  • Dialium anomalum Webb
  • Dialium discolor Hook.f.
  • Dialium nitidum (Sol. ex Vahl) Guill. & Perr.

Distribution and habitat

edit

Dialium guineense is native to West Africa, from Senegal east to the Democratic Republic of the Congo.[1] It grows in dense forests along the southern edge of the Sahel.

Uses

edit

The bark and leaves have medicinal properties and are used against several diseases.[citation needed]

 
Fruit

Fruit

edit

Each fruit typically has one hard, flat, round, brown seed, typically 7-8 millimeters across and 3 millimeters thick. The seed somewhat resembles a watermelon seed (Citrullus lanatus). Some have two seeds. The seeds are shiny, coated with a thin layer of starch.

The pulp is edible and may be eaten raw or soaked in water and consumed as a beverage. The bitter leaves are ingredients in a Ghanaian dish called domoda.

 
African Velvet tamarind

Timber

edit

Wood is hard and heavy and used for construction. The wood is also used for firewood and charcoal production

References

edit
  1. ^ a b IUCN SSC Global Tree Specialist Group & Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI) (2022). "Dialium guineense". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2022: e.T204813231A204813233. Retrieved 16 January 2023.
  2. ^ a b "Dialium guineense". Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 22 April 2024.
  3. ^ "Dialium guineense". European and Mediterranean Plant Protection Organization (EPPO). Retrieved 22 April 2024.
edit