Vachellia oerfota
Species of legume
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Vachellia oerfota is a species of shrub or tree native to northeastern Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, and Iran.[3]
| Vachellia oerfota | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Rosids |
| Order: | Fabales |
| Family: | Fabaceae |
| Subfamily: | Caesalpinioideae |
| Clade: | Mimosoid clade |
| Genus: | Vachellia |
| Species: | V. oerfota |
| Binomial name | |
| Vachellia oerfota | |
| Varieties[3] | |
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 | |
| Range of Vachellia oerfota | |
| Synonyms[3][4] | |
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Species synonyms:
Synonyms of var. brevifolia:
Synonyms of var. oerfota:
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Botanical description
It is a somewhat obconical shrub which grows up to about 5 metres high.[5] The branches often radiate from the base in all directions. The branchlets tend to be straight and are grey-white, with grey-white spines with brown tips, 0.5 to 1.5 cm long. The pinnae are in 3 to 12 pairs, with leaflets in 5 to 15 pairs, about 0.3 cm long.[6] The flowers are off-white in globose heads, and are very fragrant Pods are 5 to 10 cm long, 1.25 cm broad and pale yellow, pointed at both ends. The seeds are olive-green, with five to ten in a pod.[7] It has an offensive smell when bruised or cut.
Distribution
Varieties
Two varieties are accepted.[3]
- Vachellia oerfota var. brevifolia (Boulos) Kyal. & Boatwr. – Somalia, western Socotra Archipelago incl. incl. Abd al Kuri, Oman, Yemen, and Saudi Arabia
- Vachellia oerfota var. oerfota – northeastern Africa from Egypt to Chad and Tanzania, Socotra Archipelago, Arabian Peninsula (Oman, Saudi Arabia, and Yemen), and Iran
Uses
It is an important legume tree commonly browsed by goats and camels in Africa. It is valued as a fodder by pastoralists.[8] The leaves and pods are high in calcium, and the leaves are a good source of phosphorus.[9]
The bark extract is said to have medicinal value amongst the Borana of Ethiopia, where it is boiled amongst other things for colds.[10] Amongst the Samburu of Kenya is used for "women's stomach pain, hetpatitis, fever and gonorrhoea".[11] It is used in making beverages.[12] The bark is peeled, soaked in water and drunk as tea.
