Kuilinga
Combretum glutinosum

Family: Combretaceae

What it is like

A shrub or small tree. It can be a woody climber. It grows 12 m tall. The leaves are bug and thick and whitish underneath. The young leaves are covered with a sticky secretion. The leaf shape varies. The flowering shoots are in the axils of leaves and are in yellow-green clusters 6-10 cm long. The fruit have 4 wings. They are about 3 cm long. They are green when young and light red when mature.

Where it is found

It is a tropical plant. It grows in the Sahel. It grows in savannah woodland. It grows in the Sahara on dunes and poor soils. It grows in areas with an annual rainfall between 200-900 mm. It can grow in arid places. In Nigeria it has been recorded at 900 m above sea level.

Countries/locations it is found in

Africa, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central Africa, Côte d'Ivoire, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinée, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Sahel, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Sudan, West Africa

How it is used for food

The dried leaves are used for tea.

Edible parts

Leaves, leaves - tea, vegetable

How it is grown

Its other names

Local names

Djambacatam, Jamba katang, Jambkato

Synonyms

Combretum cordofanum Engl. & Diels; Combretum etessei Aubrev.; Combretum passargei Engl. et Diels; Combretum leonense Engl. et Diels;