Okoro, Red nongo
Albizia zygia
Family: Fabaceae
What it is like
A tree which loses its leaves. It is usually 20 m tall but can vary from 9-30 m tall. It has a spreading crown which occurs in layers. The trunk is often crooked. The bark is smooth but when mature becomes brown and cracked. The outer layer of the bark looks like orange peel when cut. The leaves are twice divided. 3 pairs then 2-5 pairs. They do not have a dense covering of hairs. The end leaflet is the longest (3-7 cm) and the one nearest the stalk is shortest (1 cm). There are normally 2-5 pairs of leaflets. The flower are half round heads about 2 cm across. The male and female flowers are of different colours. The fruit is a flat pod. They are papery and 10 cm long by 2 cm wide. They contain 9-12 flat seeds about 1 cm across.
There are 145-150 Albizia species. They grow in the tropics and subtropics. Also as Mimosaceae.
Where it is found
A tropical plant. It occurs in lowland rain-forest and along rivers. In Uganda it grows between 915 and 1,370 m altitude. It can grow in arid places.
Countries/locations it is found in
Africa, Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cabinda, Cameroon, Central Africa, Central African Republic, CAR, Chad, Congo, Côte d'Ivoire, East Africa, Equatorial-Guinea, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinée, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Liberia, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sahel, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, West Africa, Zambia
How it is used for food
The leaves are used in the preparation of soup. The stem is powdered and used as a soup base.
Edible parts
Leaves
How it is grown
Seed should be collected just before the pods split open. The seed should be soaked in water overnight before planting.
The young tree is slow growing.
Its other names
Local names
Biaioga, Buiaioga, Bunike, Cobaga-e, Folo-kpakpei, Folo, Foo, Fufu, Ka-pun-ka-kari, Ka-pun, Kpakpei, Kpangba, Mabodadi, Marrone, Masamp, Msamp-m'boko, Mukunzuru, Mweyeye, Oturbam, Po-de-raio, Pun-de, Tali, Taliba, Tangalamara, Tombonka're, Uarmaua