Entada africana

Family: Fabaceae

What it is like

A small tree. It grows 8 m tall. It has low branches and a wide crown. It loses its leaves during the year. The bark is grey-brown and has stripes across it. It is scaly. The leaves are alternate and twice divided. The stalk is 25-30 cm long with 2-9 pair of side stalks which have 10-20 pairs of leaflets. The base of the leaflets is unequal. They are 2-3 cm long by 1 cm wide. The flowers are white to yellow and have a slight scent. They are in spikes 15 cm long in the axils of leaves. The fruit is a pod. It is 10-22 cm long and flat. The seeds have 2 wings.

There are about 30 Entada species. They occur in the tropics. Also as Mimosaceae. The leaves contain rotenol.

Where it is found

A tropical plant. It grows in the savannah in West Africa. In Nigeria it is common at about 1,000 m above sea level. It grows in the Sahel. It grows on lower slopes or banks of swamps. It grows in areas with a rainfall between 600-1,200 mm each year. It is damaged by bush fires. It can grow in arid places.

Countries/locations it is found in

Africa, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central Africa, Congo, East Africa, Ghana, Guinea, Guinée, Guinea-Bissau, Niger, Nigeria, Sahel, Senegal, Sudan, Uganda, West Africa, Zambia

How it is used for food

Edible parts

Leaves - flavouring, root

How it is grown

Its other names

Local names

Batiare, Bonome, Bu salel, Pade-pade, Papadar, Samatino, Tawarsa, Wondon

Synonyms

Entada sudanica Schweinf.; Entada ubanguiensis De Wild.; Entadopsis sudanica (Schweinf.) Gilbert et Boutique;