Dracaena steudneri
Engl.
Northern large-leaved dragon-tree
(c) Marco Schmidt, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), uploaded by Marco Schmidt
(c) mikeloomis, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by mikeloomis
(c) frasergear, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by frasergear
What to Eat
The leaves are used for baking bread.
Where to Find It
It is a tropical plant. It grows in open forest as an early re-growth species. In Malawi it grows between about 1,000 and 2,000 m altitude.
Africa, Central Africa, Congo, East Africa, Ethiopia, Malawi, Mozambique, Rwanda, Southern Africa, Zambia, Zimbabwe,
How to Identify
A tree. It grows up to 15-18 m high. It has a few stout branches. The leaves are crowded near the ends of branches. They are in rings. The inner leaves are erect and the outer leaves droop. They are 1 m long.
Wikipedia
Source ↗Dracaena steudneri, the northern large-leaved dragon-tree, is a species of flowering plant in the family Asparagaceae, found from Ethiopia to southern tropical Africa. It is being investigated for its high-quality fiber content. It is fed upon by larvae of the bush nightfighter, Artitropa erinnys. In the past the name Dracaena steudneri was erroneously assigned to the well-known ornamental and house plant Dracaena fragrans, called the cornstalk dracaena, striped dracaena, compact dracaena, and corn plant, leading to much confusion.
Notes
Possibly edible. Also put in the family Dracaenaceae.
Names & Synonyms
Etse phatos, Igihoondohoondo
References (4)
- Fowler, D. G., 2007, Zambian Plants: Their Vernacular Names and Uses. Kew. p 86
- Molla, A., Ethiopian Plant Names. http://www.ethiopic.com/aplants.htm
- Plowes, N. J. & Taylor, F. W., 1997, The Processing of Indigenous Fruits and other Wildfoods of Southern Africa. in Smartt, L. & Haq. (Eds) Domestication, Production and Utilization of New Crops. ICUC p 190
- White, F., Dowsett-Lemaire, F. and Chapman, J. D., 2001, Evergreen Forest Flora of Malawi. Kew. p 101
