Brachystegia longifolia Benth.

Species

Angiosperms > Fabales > Fabaceae > Brachystegia

Characteristics

Tree (2–)4–15(–25) m. high, often stunted by exposure, very variable in all parts especially habit and indumentum, displaying every intermediate expression and most combinations of the characters described for B. boehmii and B. glaberrima; most forms fall within the range shown in fig. 41.. Bole often with conspicuous rounded bosses (even in forms otherwise close to B. boehmii); bark deeply furrowed to coarsely reticulate, grey or brownish; crown rounded to obconical or flat; main branching suberect to spreading; branchlets spreading in bunched systems with foliage usually rather pendulous in loose tufts (unless leaflets few).. Stipules filiform to falcate, 1–3 cm. long, caducous to subpersistent, usually with reniform auricles.. Leaves glabrous to tomentose, with (5–)6–12(–17) pairs of leaflets, the pairs very variable in spacing, the middle pairs usually the largest; rhachis usually 10–15 times as long as the petiole, channelled, usually with obvious but variable stipels or local expansions; leaflets oblong to narrowly triangular, (3–)4–6(–8) × (0.5–)1–2(–3) cm., very acute to broadly rounded or emarginate at apex, obliquely rounded or truncate to cordate at base; main nerves and larger veins usually more conspicuous than the open to rather close final reticulation.. Panicles terminal (rarely also axillary), glabrous or fulvous-to dark brown-tomentose; peduncle usually slender and terete, rarely sulcate.. Flowers greenish with white or cream stamen-filaments; bracteoles very variable in thickness and shape.. Tepals (4–)5(–9); outer 4–6 imbricate, densely long-ciliate, often with 1 or more pubescent outside; inner 0 or 1–4, variable.. Pod up to 15 × 5 cm., smooth or partly to completely scurfy, often warted when smooth or nearly so.. Figs 35/11, p. 160, & 41, p. 189.
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Leaves 7–25 cm long; petiole (0.8)1–5 cm long; rachis deeply canaliculate with raised and winged margins; leaflets in 6–18 pairs, widely spaced or overlapping; middle leaflet or the one next to the proximal the largest; proximal leaflet pair 1–5 × 1–2 cm, the middle 2.5–8 × 1–3 cm, each 2–3 times longer than broad, narrowly triangular, ovate to oblong, sometimes falcate, acute or rounded at the apex, obliquely rounded, cordate or truncate at the base, glabrous or pubescent; midvein central or subcentral, with 3–5 secondary veins diverging from the proximal leaflet base.
Stipules caducous, 15–35 × 1–5 mm, shortly connate at the base, filiform, linear, lanceolate-falcate to subfoliaceous; auricles 1–17 × 0.5–9 mm, reniform to subcircular, caducous independently of the stipules.
Pods 7–20 × 2.5–5 cm, oblong to obovate, rounded to obtuse at the apex with a 4–8 mm long apical beak, light to dark brown, with spreading or suberect ventral flanges up to 7 mm wide.
Inflorescences in terminal and/or axillary panicles to 10 cm long, glabrous or pubescent with dark or rusty hairs; bracts 2.5–4 × 1.5–3 mm, ovate to oblong, acute at the apex.
Tree 4–30 m tall; bark deeply or shallowly fissured longitudinally, often coarsely reticulate, flaking in thick irregular scales, dark grey.
Sepals 5, 2–4 × 0.5–5 mm, oblong, obovate, lanceolate or imbricate, the proximal and lateral sepals often fused.
Ovary 4–6 × 1.5–2 mm, up to 8-ovulate; stipe to 2 mm long, densely pubescent; style up to 12 mm long.
Flowers 4–6 × 3–4 mm; pedicels up to 2.5 mm long; bracteoles 6–8 × 3–4 mm, obovate or orbicular.
Stamens 10, united to 1 mm at the base, filaments 10–20 mm long.
Petals 0–4, up to 2.5–3 × 0.5 mm, linear to spathulate.
Seeds 2–6, 12–15 × 10–15 mm, oblong to ovoid.
Dormant axillary buds much flattened.
Life form perennial
Growth form tree
Growth support free-standing
Foliage retention deciduous
Sexuality hermaphrodite
Pollination -
Spread -
Mature width (meter) -
Mature height (meter) 4.0 - 15.0
Root system -
Rooting depth (meter) 3.2
Root diameter (meter) -
Flower color
Blooming months -
Fruit color -
Fruiting months -
Nitrogen fixer -
Photosynthetic pathway c3

Environment

Deciduous woodland at elevations from 200-2,100 metres. Characteristic of leached quartz sand on hills.
Light -
Soil humidity -
Soil texture -
Soil acidity -
Soil nutriment -
Hardiness (USDA) -

Usage

Uses charcoal environmental use fiber fuel material medicinal wood
Edible -
Therapeutic use -
Human toxicity -
Animal toxicity -

Cultivation

Can be grown by seedlings.
Mode seedlings
Germination duration (days) -
Germination temperacture (C°) -
Germination luminosity -
Germination treatment -
Minimum temperature (C°) -
Optimum temperature (C°) -
Size -
Vigor -
Productivity -

Distribution

Brachystegia longifolia world distribution map, present in Angola and Zambia

Conservation status

Brachystegia longifolia threat status: Least Concern

Identifiers

LSID urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:482229-1
WFO ID wfo-0000213828
COL ID N256
BDTFX ID -
INPN ID -
Wikipedia (EN)
Wikipedia (FR)

Synonyms

Brachystegia apertifolia Brachystegia goetzei Brachystegia holtzii Brachystegia homblei Brachystegia falcato-appendiculata Brachystegia longifolia Brachystegia longifolia var. parviflora