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Leguminosae
Synonyms
A. erioloba E. Mey.; A. giraffae Willd.
Common names
Camel thorn.
Description
Medium to large tree, up to 12 m high; stipular spines, stout,
brown and straight, up to 3 cm long; foliage green, leaves up to 6 cm long
with one to three pairs of pinnae. Pinnules about 5 mm long and nearly
2 mm broad in 8 to 15 pairs. Flowers capitate and yellow.
Distribution
Occurs from the Cape Province, South Africa, to Zimbabwe on
deep alluvium and sand.
Characteristics
Tolerant of frost but easily killed by fire. When felled it
will coppice freely from the stems and will sucker from the roots. Flowers
in September in Cape Province and ripe pods are shaken from the trees from
July onward. The roughly falcate pods are thick and heavy and are covered
with a dense grey felt. A yield of 275 kg. of pods per tree has often been
exceeded, and up to 500 kg. has been reached. Peak production occurs at
20 years of age four to eight trees per 0.5 ha are preferable (West, 1950).
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