Boar wood, Hog gum tree
Symphonia globulifera

Family: Clusiaceae

What it is like

A tree. It grows 15-30 m tall. The trunk is straight. The crown has short horizontal branches. The bark is smooth and dark brown. The branches have grooves along them. The leaves are leathery. The leaf blade is 5-12 cm long by 2-4 cm wide. It tapers to the tip and is wedge shaped at the base. Leaves are paler underneath. The flowers occur as many together. They are at the ends of short branches. The petals are bright red or yellow. The fruit is a berry 15-35 mm across. It is red but turns brown. It has 1-2 seeds. The seeds are 15-20 mm long and flattened.

Where it is found

It is a tropical plant. It grows in muddy forest swamps. It is along rivers and on the edges of forests. In Nigeria it is recorded at 600-1,800 m above sea level.

Countries/locations it is found in

Africa, Angola, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Burundi, Cabinda, Cameroon, Central Africa, Central America (country/location of origin), Chad, Colombia, Congo DR, Congo R, Costa Rica, East Africa, Ecuador, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Guatemala, French Guiana, Guianas, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti (country/location of origin), Honduras, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Lesser Antilles, Liberia, Mexico, Nicaragua, Nigeria, North America, Panama, Peru, Rwanda, Sao Tome and Principe, Sierra Leone, South America (country/location of origin), Suriname, Tanzania, Trinidad-Tobago, Uganda, Venezuela, West Africa, West Indies (country/location of origin), Zambia

How it is used for food

Edible parts

Fruit

How it is grown

Plants can be grown from seeds. They are put in hot water that is then allowed to cool and they are soaked overnight. The seeds can be planted directly or put in a nursery and transplanted.

Its other names

Local names

Aopo, Barillo, Beek, Ccoqqui quini'cco, Cerillo, Cero, Kisongi, Machaachi, Mangle jaune, Mulungu, Muzimba, Nsongi, Ntadia ngombo, Omando te'ta, Punkara kaspi, Umushishi

Synonyms

Moronobea coccinea Aubl.; Moronobea globulifera Schtdl.; Symphonia gabonensis (Vesque) Pierre; Symphonia microphylla R. E. Schult.; Symphonia ultissima R. E. Schult.; and others