Gliricidia, Forest Lilac, Mexican Lilac
Gliricidia sepium

Family: Fabaceae

What it is like

Other common names of Gliricidia are quick stick, mata ratn; cacao de nance, cachanance, pion Cubano (Dominican Republic), madreado (Honduras), kakawate (Philippines), madre xacao or madre de cacao (Philippines and Guatemala), and madero negro (Nicaragua). Considered as the second most important multi-purpose legume tree, Gliricidia or Gliricidia sepium grows about 2-15 m in height with twisted bole of up to 30cm in diameter. It is also planted as an ornamental tree due to its flowers or as a fuel crop. It is fast-growing and has the potential to become a weed. Further, it has a symbiotic with certain soil bacteria that form root nodules and fix atmospheric nitrogen. It also functions as a green manure, increasing the soil organic matter. The leaves are compound The flowers of Gliricidia are edible when cooked. The whole plant is a folk remedy for various conditions such as but not limited to colds, cough, fever, headache, bruises, burns, rheumatism, ulcers, and wounds. It can also be used as a rodenticide and general pesticide. The seeds, in particular, can be used as rat poison. The wood is termite-resistant, hard, heavy, very tough and very durable. It is used for railway sleepers, farm implements, furniture, etc.

Gliricidia sepium is a deciduous Shrub growing to 10 m (32ft) by 8 m (26ft) at a fast rate. See above for USDA hardiness. It is hardy to UK zone 10 and is frost tender. The flowers are pollinated by Bees, Insects. The plant is not self-fertile. It can fix Nitrogen. Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and prefers well-drained soil. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils and can grow in saline soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It prefers moist soil and can tolerate drought. The plant can tolerates strong winds but not maritime exposure.

Height (m): 10

Where it is found

Early and middle successional vegetation types on disturbed sites such as coastal sand dunes, river banks, floodplains and fallow land at elevations from sea level up to 1,500 metres.

Central America - Costa Rica, north to Mexico.

Conservation Status: This taxon has not yet been assessed

Countries/locations it is found in

Brazil; Belize; Panama; Nicaragua; Honduras; El Salvador; Costa Rica; Guatemala; Colombia; Mexico, Africa, Antilles, Aruba, Asia, Australia, Bahamas, Belize, Bhutan, Brazil, Brunei, Burma, Cameroon, Caribbean, Central Africa, Central America, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominica, Dominican Republic, East Africa, East Timor, Ecuador, El Salvador, Fiji, French Guiana, Ghana, Guam, Guadeloupe, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Hawaii, Honduras, India, Indochina, Indonesia, Jamaica, Kiribati, Laos, Madagascar, Malaysia, Martinique, Mauritius, Mexico, Mozambique, Myanmar, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, North America, Pacific, Pakistan, Palau, Pan tropical, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Puerto Rico, Reunion, Samoa, SE Asia, Seychelles, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Solomon Islands, Southern Africa, Sri Lanka, St Lucia, Suriname, Tanzania, Thailand, Timor-Leste, Tonga, Trinidad & Tobago, Uganda, USA, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Vietnam, West Africa, Zimbabwe,

How it is used

Food

Rating: 2

Edible portion: Leaves, Flowers, Vegetable. Flowers - cooked and eaten as a potherb. They are also folded into a batter and fried. The leaves have been reported as being eaten. They are used in a fish dish. There are some reports that all parts of this plant are poisonous. The leaves have been used to kill rats.

Medicine

Rating: 2

The plant is reported to be expectorant, sedative and suppurative. Crude extracts have been shown to have antifungal activity. The plant is a folk remedy for alopecia, boils, bruises, burns, colds, cough, debility, eruptions, erysipelas, fever, fractures, gangrene, headache, itch, prickly heat, rheumatism, skin tumours, ulcers, urticaria and wounds.

Antidermatosic: Prevents or cures skin complaints.

Antifungal: An agent that inhibits or destroys fungi. Used in the treatment of various fungal problems such as candida.

Expectorant: Clears phlegm from the chest by inducing coughing.

Febrifuge: Reduces fevers.

Sedative: Gently calms, reducing nervousness, distress and irritation.

Skin: Plants used in miscellaneous treatments for the skin.

Other

Rating: 5

Small flowering tree, Specimen, Living fence posts, Agricultural shade, Land stabilization, Xerophytic. Agroforestry Uses: Gliricidia is a pioneer species that readily colonises open ground and is used for reclaiming Imperata grasslands. It is widely cultivated as a shade tree for perennial crops such as tea, coffee and cocoa. It is also used as a nurse tree for shade-loving species. Attributes contributing to its value as a shade tree include its fine, feathery foliage giving light shade, and the ability to withstand repeated pruning and to resprout vigorously. When grown as a hedgerow in alley cropping, it serves to suppress weed growth and control erosion and has been shown to reduce the incidence of disease in groundnut crops. With its ease of propagation from large cuttings, it is one of the most suitable species for live fencing around cattle pastures and for delineating boundaries. Its fast growth, ease of propagation, nitrogen fixing ability and light canopy makes it ideal as a live stakes. It has been used to support black pepper, vanilla and yam in West Africa and India. It has been planted to reclaim denuded land or land infested with Imperata cylindrica. As a green manure, gliricidia increases soil organic matter; it aids in the recycling of soil nutrients as it produces much litter. It also improves soil aeration and reduces soil temperature. It is a drought-resistant and valuable water-conserving species, because in the dry season it sheds most of its leaves, hence reducing water loss through transpiration. Other Uses The plant has found application as a rodenticide and general pesticide. The seeds are used as a rat poison. The roots are said to have a sweetish taste and to be deadly to the field mice and rats which invariably eat them in preference to those of cacao or coffee trees. The heartwood is dark brown, turning reddish-brown on exposure to air; the moderately thin band of sapwood is yellowish to light brown, turning reddish brown on exposure. The texture is coarse; the grain is irregular and close. The wood is hard, heavy, very tough, very durable in contact with the soil and termite resistant. It is difficult to split and takes a very good polish. The wood is utilized for railway sleepers, farm implements, tool handles, furniture, house construction and as mother posts in live-fence establishment. The wood is often used for fuel and charcoal production. It burns slowly without sparking and with little smoke, so it is an important fuel wood in the subhumid tropics. The calorific value of a 5-year-old tree is 4550 kcal/kg.

Biomass: Provides a large quantity of plant material that can be converted into fuel etc.

Charcoal: Used for fuel, drawing, deodorant, filter, fertilizer etc.

Fencing: Plants that can be used for fencing.

Fodder: Food given to the animals (including plants cut and carried to them) rather than forage for themselves.

Fuel: Usually wood, plant materials that have been mentioned as being a good fuel.

Furniture: A few miscellaneous uses that do not fit easily into other headings.

Green manure: Fast-growing plants that can be used to increase the fertility of the soil.

Hedge: Plants that can be grown as hedges.

Pioneer: Plants, usually trees and shrubs, that can be used to reforest land.

Plant support: Usually bamboos, used as canes in the garden for holding up plants.

Repellent: Plants that are said to deter but not necessarily kill various mammals, birds, insects etc.

Shelterbelt: Wind resistant plants than can be grown to provide shelter in the garden etc.

Soil conditioner: Plants grown to improve the structure of the soil. See also Green manures.

Soil stabilization: Plants that can be grown in places such as sand dunes in order to prevent erosion by wind, water or other agents.

Wood: A list of the trees and shrubs that are noted for having useful wood.

Agroforestry Services: Alley crop: Integrates annual crops with rows of perennials.

Agroforestry Services: Contour hedgerow: Alley cropping systems on the contour of slopes.

Agroforestry Services: Crop shade: Plants providing crop shade especially trees.

Agroforestry Services: Living fence: Simply managed rows of shrubs and trees.

Agroforestry Services: Living trellis: Plants to physically support other crops.

Agroforestry Services: Nitrogen: Plants that contribute to nitrogen fixation include the legume family – Fabaceae.

Agroforestry Services: Windbreak: Linear plantings of trees and shrubs designed to enhance crop production, protect people and livestock and benefit soil and water conservation.

Fodder: Bank: Fodder banks are plantings of high-quality fodder species. Their goal is to maintain healthy productive animals. They can be utilized all year, but are designed to bridge the forage scarcity of annual dry seasons. Fodder bank plants are usually trees or shrubs, and often legumes. The relatively deep roots of these woody perennials allow them to reach soil nutrients and moisture not available to grasses and herbaceous plants.

Industrial Crop: Biomass: Three broad categories: bamboos, resprouting woody plants, and giant grasses. uses include: protein, materials (paper, building materials, fibers, biochar etc.), chemicals (biobased chemicals), energy - biofuels

Management: Coppice: Cut to the ground repeatedly - resprouting vigorously. Non-destructive management systems maintaining the soil organic carbon.

Management: Standard: Plants grow to their standard height. Harvest fruit, seeds, or other products. Non-Destructive management systems.

Minor Global Crop: These crops are already grown or traded around the world, but on a smaller scale than the global perennial staple and industrial crops, The annual value of a minor global crop is under $1 billion US. Examples include shea, carob, Brazil nuts and fibers such as ramie and sisal.