Synsepalum msolo (Engl.) T.D.Penn.

Species

Angiosperms > Ericales > Sapotaceae > Synsepalum

Characteristics

A medium to tall evergreen tree. It grows 20 to 50 m tall. It has a dense crown and deeply fluted trunk. The trunk can be 3 m across. The leaves occur one after another along the stalk. They can be 8 to 35 cm long and 3 to 14 cm wide. They are dark green and leathery. They are shiny and smooth on the upper surface and slightly hairy and silver underneath. Leaf shape varies. They tend to be oval. Flowers are small and greenish white. They have a smell. The flowers are clustered below the leaves on young branches. The fruit are small and green. They are almost round berries about 3 cm long by 2.5 cm wide. The fruit become yellow when ripe and have a milky juice. The fruit pulp is edible.
Life form perennial
Growth form tree
Growth support free-standing
Foliage retention evergreen
Sexuality hermaphrodite
Pollination -
Spread -
Mature width (meter) -
Mature height (meter) 30.36
Root system -
Rooting depth (meter) -
Root diameter (meter) -
Flower color -
Blooming months -
Fruit color
Fruiting months -
Nitrogen fixer -
Photosynthetic pathway -

Environment

A tropical plant. It grows in lowland rainforests in East Africa. It suits humid locations. It grows between 80 m and 1400 m above sea level. It grows in areas with average rainfalls between 650 mm and 1750 mm. It grows in areas with temperatures between 16°C and 31°C.
More
Lowland rainforest, extending into the lower fringes of upland rainforest, riverine forest, at elevations from 100-1,400 metres.
Light -
Soil humidity -
Soil texture -
Soil acidity -
Soil nutriment -
Hardiness (USDA) 9-12

Usage

The ripe fruit are eaten. The ripe fruit are also soaked in water, squeezed, filtered, sugar added and the juice drunk.
Uses animal food charcoal environmental use food fuel gene source material medicinal timber wood
Edible fruits
Therapeutic use -
Human toxicity -
Animal toxicity -

Cultivation

Plants grow naturally from seed. Seed germination is good. Trees can be topped and this improves fruit quality.
Mode seedlings
Germination duration (days) -
Germination temperacture (C°) -
Germination luminosity -
Germination treatment -
Minimum temperature (C°) -
Optimum temperature (C°) 16 - 31
Size -
Vigor -
Productivity -

Distribution

Synsepalum msolo world distribution map, present in Benin, Congo, Gabon, Ghana, Kenya, Tanzania, United Republic of, and Uganda

Conservation status

Synsepalum msolo threat status: Least Concern

Identifiers

LSID urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:962752-1
WFO ID wfo-0000318152
COL ID 53YM5
BDTFX ID -
INPN ID -
Wikipedia (EN)
Wikipedia (FR)

Synonyms

Pachystela argentea Pachystela bequaertii Pachystela robusta Pouteria msolo Pachystela msolo Synsepalum msolo Chrysophyllum msolo Amorphospermum msolo Pouteria zenkeri