Fruit trees we are looking for
Vitellaria paradoxa
Vitellaria paradoxa Gaertn. C. F.
synonyms
Bassia parkii G. Don
Butyrospermum paradoxum (Gaertn f.) Hepper
Butyrospermum parkii (G. Don) Kotschy
Common name: Shea
Local names: Arabic: oum kouroum • Bamoun: sap • Bangangté: kekombichop • Baya: kol • Foulfouldé: karehi • Guiziga: sougoum • Haoussa: kadanya • Kanouri: tosso • Koma: kele • Mboum: soro • Moundeng: kire
Origin, geographical distribution and ecology
Characteristic species of the Sudanian domain of Africa, in wooded savannahs and clear forests, particularly resistant to bush fires. Its vast range extends from Senegal to the Nile, and south to Uganda. In Cameroon, it is found in the Sahelosudanian steppes (around the Maroua-Mokolo line) to the peri-forest savannahs (limit around Bafia). It is also quite abundant in the highland savannas of the west of the country up to 1600 m altitude where it was probably planted and protected.
Description
Tree 10-15 m high; very developed crown; short bole up to 200 cm in diameter; bark dark gray to blackish, deeply fissured, cut into rectangular scales, red slice exuding a white latex.
Leaves grouped at the end of thick twigs, alternate, simple; oblong laminae, rounded or emarginate tops with wavy, coriaceous margins up to 25 x 12 cm, deciduous; young red leaves.
Inflorescences in dense umbels of 30-40 flowers at the end of the defoliated branches.
Whitish flowers, very fragrant; hermaphrodites, tetramers; campanulate chalice with 8 lobes in two whorls of 4 sepals each; corolla with 8 interlocking lobes; 8 stamens fused at the base; ovary at 5-8 cells.
Fruit: subglobose or elongate berries about 5 x 5 cm, with persistent, yellowish calyx lobes; fleshy pulp with white latex.
Single seed of variable form, up to 4.5 cm long, brown, shiny, scarred all the way up; whitish almond.
Deciduous leaves in the dry season. Flowering in dry season on defoliated branches from December to early August. Fruits at maturity between May and August and harvest from June to September.
Variability and conservation of the resource
The natural population is very often affected by bush fires in shrub savannahs and perennial savannas. Intense fruit picking significantly limits the dispersal and regeneration of this species.
Vittelaria paradoxa is part of the family Sapotaceae which includes several species, the best known are Baillonella toxisperma, Tieghemella africana, Aningeria altissima etc. However, it is the only Sapotaceae species of dry soils in Sudanese climate.
Research conducted in West Africa has allowed for the presumption of morphological variations according to geographical gradients, which could be hereditary
uses
Vitellaria paradoxa is usually protected and revered because of the economic value of the fat extracted from fermented almonds. The parts of the plant usually used are: fruits, seeds, fat, leaves, roots, bark and wood.
Pulp and seeds are the most used parts of the fruit. Fruits and cakes are also used as livestock feed.
Fresh, reduced to pulp or flour, the pulp makes it possible to obtain a creamy and refreshing liquid. Oilseeds are used to make shea butter which is a mixture of latex and fat. This butter is used in local food for making sauces and fried foods. The pulp is also used in pastry. Fresh leaves are used to pack food.
Roots, leaves and bark have medicinal properties. Powdered roots are used against liver cancer, stomach pains (gastritis), female infertility and ascites. Cold macerated or decoction tender leaves treat jaundice, relieve nausea, constipation, diarrhea and stomach bloating. The bark is purgative and emetic. Used superficially or in decoction, it is used for medico-magic purposes and is used in the treatment of madness, fevers, constipation, schistosomiasis, amoebic dysentery, coughing etc. Leaf ash kills lice (Malgras 1992, Arbonnier 2000). In the Malian savannahs, almond juice is known to be an antivenom and is used to treat bloody diarrhea (Malgras, 1992). The seeds of Vitellaria paradoxa are also antivenomous. Because of its emollient and healing properties, shea butter is frequently used in the cosmetics and pharmacy industry for the manufacture of ointments, soaps, lipsticks and poultices.
Vitellaria paradoxa gives a termite-resistant lumber, but difficult to work. It is used as a building material and carpentry. It is a fuel of excellent quality as well as its coal. Seed cakes are used in Malian savannas for plastering box walls, as a termite repellent (Arbonnier, 2000).
synonyms
Bassia parkii G. Don
Butyrospermum paradoxum (Gaertn f.) Hepper
Butyrospermum parkii (G. Don) Kotschy
Common name: Shea
Local names: Arabic: oum kouroum • Bamoun: sap • Bangangté: kekombichop • Baya: kol • Foulfouldé: karehi • Guiziga: sougoum • Haoussa: kadanya • Kanouri: tosso • Koma: kele • Mboum: soro • Moundeng: kire
Origin, geographical distribution and ecology
Characteristic species of the Sudanian domain of Africa, in wooded savannahs and clear forests, particularly resistant to bush fires. Its vast range extends from Senegal to the Nile, and south to Uganda. In Cameroon, it is found in the Sahelosudanian steppes (around the Maroua-Mokolo line) to the peri-forest savannahs (limit around Bafia). It is also quite abundant in the highland savannas of the west of the country up to 1600 m altitude where it was probably planted and protected.
Description
Tree 10-15 m high; very developed crown; short bole up to 200 cm in diameter; bark dark gray to blackish, deeply fissured, cut into rectangular scales, red slice exuding a white latex.
Leaves grouped at the end of thick twigs, alternate, simple; oblong laminae, rounded or emarginate tops with wavy, coriaceous margins up to 25 x 12 cm, deciduous; young red leaves.
Inflorescences in dense umbels of 30-40 flowers at the end of the defoliated branches.
Whitish flowers, very fragrant; hermaphrodites, tetramers; campanulate chalice with 8 lobes in two whorls of 4 sepals each; corolla with 8 interlocking lobes; 8 stamens fused at the base; ovary at 5-8 cells.
Fruit: subglobose or elongate berries about 5 x 5 cm, with persistent, yellowish calyx lobes; fleshy pulp with white latex.
Single seed of variable form, up to 4.5 cm long, brown, shiny, scarred all the way up; whitish almond.
Deciduous leaves in the dry season. Flowering in dry season on defoliated branches from December to early August. Fruits at maturity between May and August and harvest from June to September.
Variability and conservation of the resource
The natural population is very often affected by bush fires in shrub savannahs and perennial savannas. Intense fruit picking significantly limits the dispersal and regeneration of this species.
Vittelaria paradoxa is part of the family Sapotaceae which includes several species, the best known are Baillonella toxisperma, Tieghemella africana, Aningeria altissima etc. However, it is the only Sapotaceae species of dry soils in Sudanese climate.
Research conducted in West Africa has allowed for the presumption of morphological variations according to geographical gradients, which could be hereditary
uses
Vitellaria paradoxa is usually protected and revered because of the economic value of the fat extracted from fermented almonds. The parts of the plant usually used are: fruits, seeds, fat, leaves, roots, bark and wood.
Pulp and seeds are the most used parts of the fruit. Fruits and cakes are also used as livestock feed.
Fresh, reduced to pulp or flour, the pulp makes it possible to obtain a creamy and refreshing liquid. Oilseeds are used to make shea butter which is a mixture of latex and fat. This butter is used in local food for making sauces and fried foods. The pulp is also used in pastry. Fresh leaves are used to pack food.
Roots, leaves and bark have medicinal properties. Powdered roots are used against liver cancer, stomach pains (gastritis), female infertility and ascites. Cold macerated or decoction tender leaves treat jaundice, relieve nausea, constipation, diarrhea and stomach bloating. The bark is purgative and emetic. Used superficially or in decoction, it is used for medico-magic purposes and is used in the treatment of madness, fevers, constipation, schistosomiasis, amoebic dysentery, coughing etc. Leaf ash kills lice (Malgras 1992, Arbonnier 2000). In the Malian savannahs, almond juice is known to be an antivenom and is used to treat bloody diarrhea (Malgras, 1992). The seeds of Vitellaria paradoxa are also antivenomous. Because of its emollient and healing properties, shea butter is frequently used in the cosmetics and pharmacy industry for the manufacture of ointments, soaps, lipsticks and poultices.
Vitellaria paradoxa gives a termite-resistant lumber, but difficult to work. It is used as a building material and carpentry. It is a fuel of excellent quality as well as its coal. Seed cakes are used in Malian savannas for plastering box walls, as a termite repellent (Arbonnier, 2000).