Red thorn, Grey-haired acacia
Vachellia gerrardii

Family: Fabaceae

What it is like

A small tree. It grows up to 15 m tall. It has a flattened crown. The bark is rough and dark grey. It has very short thorns. They are in pairs. The leaves are divided twice. There are 5-12 pairs of larger leaflets and 12-18 pairs of small leaflets. The flowers are in round heads and are cream coloured. The fruit are brown pods. The pods are 22 cm long and slightly curved. The pods are about 2 cm across. They occur in clusters. There are 3 recognised varieties.

There are about 1,350 Acacia species. Over 1,000 occur in Australia. The bark of this one is used in medicine. Because of the thorns, it should not be planted near homesteads. Also as Mimosaceae.

Where it is found

It is a tropical plant. It grows at 1,300-2,000 m altitude in Uganda. It can grow in arid and semi-arid areas.

Countries/locations it is found in

Africa, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Central Africa, Central African Republic, CAR, Chad, Congo, East Africa, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Kenya, Middle East, Mozambique, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Africa, Southern Africa, South Sudan, Sudan, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, West Africa, Yemen, Zambia, Zimbabwe

How it is used for food

The bark is used in soup.

Probably minor.

Edible parts

Bark, gum, vegetable

How it is grown

It is grown from seeds. The seeds can be sown direct or in nurseries and transplanted. The seeds need to be treated by putting them in hot water then allowing it to cool and the seeds to soak for 24 hours before sowing.

It grows quickly in there is sufficient groundwater.

Its other names

Local names

Eminit, Ikope, Isanqawe, Lusenene, Munyinya, Ol-debbei, Saie, Uhahla, Umuguunga

Synonyms

Acacia gerrardii Benth.; Acacia hebecladoides Harms;