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Leguminosae
Synonyms
Ceratonia chilensis Molina.
Common names
Algaroba, kiawe (Hawaii), tamarugo, algarrobo blanco, algarrobo
de Chile (Latin America).
Description
Tree of variable height, reaching 15 m in Hawaii. Shallow,
spreading root system; branches freely, wood hard and reddish. Leaves bipinnate,
4 to 7.5 cm long, with small round glands, leaflets linear-oblong, smooth
or slightly hairy. Flowers greenish yellow, about 5 mm long, borne in a
raceme 5 to 10 cm long. Seed pod slender, slightly curved or straight,
flat at maturity, 10 to 20 cm long, smooth, yellow when ripe, borne in
drooping clusters. Seed angular-oblong, about 0.6 cm long and 0.3 wide,
light brown, enclosed in a horny structure (Hosaka and Ripperton, 1944).
Distribution
Native to Central America, it is common along the Pacific coast
of Peru, northern Chile and northern Argentina. It is naturalized in Hawaii
and is common as thickets on the Pacific beaches.
Characteristics
In Hawaii it is regarded as a useful shade and fodder plant
in the dry and hot zones. The pods or beans drop between June and November
and are an excellent feed containing much sugar. The pods are ground into
a meal for use in concentrate rations. The leaves are grazed to some extent,
but from a forage point of view they are not as important as the beans.
A mature tree may yield 80 kg. annually. In India, it is recommended for
planting as a fodder tree at altitudes ranging from 340 to 1 230 m (Gowda,
Range and Ramaswamy, 1960).
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