Chytranthus macrobotrys

(Gilg) Exell et Mendonca

SapindaceaeFruitSeeds/Nuts

gbif · cc-by-nc-sa
MBG

What to Eat

Edible parts: Seeds, Fruit, Nuts

The large seeds are boiled and eaten after removing the skin. The spongy flesh of the fruit is used to make a drink.

Where to Find It

A tropical plant.

Africa, Cameroon, Central Africa, Central African Republic, CAR, Congo DR, Congo R, Gabon, Ghana, Nigeria, West Africa,

Countries: Angola, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Benin, Botswana, Congo (DRC), Central African Republic, Congo (Republic), Cote d'Ivoire, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Djibouti, Algeria, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Gambia, Guinea, Equatorial Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Comoros, Liberia, Lesotho, Libya, Morocco, Madagascar, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Seychelles, Sudan, Sierra Leone, Senegal, Somalia, South Sudan, Sao Tome & Principe, Eswatini, Chad, Togo, Tunisia, Tanzania, Uganda, South Africa, Zambia, Zimbabwe

How to Identify

A small tree. It grows 8 m tall. The leaves are 60 cm long and opposite. They are compound with 6 leaflets. Each leaflet is 30 cm long by 10 cm wide. The flowers grow on the stem. They are in long groups 20 cm long. The flowers are very small, white and cup shaped. About 5-10 fruit grow from each flowering stalk. The fruit are green and fluted. There are several large seeds. These can be 4 cm long by 2 cm wide. They are brown and flat.

How to Grow

Plants are grown from seed.

Medicinal Uses

The spongy flesh of the fruit is traditionally used to make a drink.

Production

Fruiting is seasonal.

Names & Synonyms

Adigi, Banjeje, Bodumbe, Bonsow, Bosbume, Bosemu, Bosew, Botokolo, Dugu, Dugulu, Gesumba, Inzium, Lipueso, Lotokolo, Okene, Otoko, Sin, Tokolo

Chytranthus mayumbensis ExellGlossolepis giorgii De Wild.Glossolepis macrobotrys Gilg.

References (9)

Danforth, R.M., & Boren, P.D., 1997, Congo Native fruits. Twenty-five of the best. Privately published. p 44
Hauman, L., 1960, Flore du Congo Belge et du Ruanda-Urundi: Sapindaceae. vol. 9, p. 351
Jardin, C., 1970, List of Foods Used In Africa, FAO Nutrition Information Document Series No 2.p 41
Keay, R.W.J., 1989, Trees of Nigeria. Clarendon Press, Oxford. p 363
Mosango M., Szafranski F., 1985, Plantes sauvages à fruits comestibles dans les environs de Kisangani (Zaïre). In: Journal d'agriculture traditionnelle et de botanique appliquée, 32e année, pp. 177-190
Nkeoua, G. & Boundzanga, G. C., 1999, Donnees sur les produits forestieres non ligneux en Republique du Congo. FAO. p 22
Termote, C., et al, 2011, Eating from the wild: Turumbu, Mbole and Bali traditional knowledge of non-cultivated edible plants, District Tshopo, DRCongo, Gen Resourc Crop Evol. 58:585-618
The Digital Flora of Central Africa, 2013, (Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda & Burundi) Botanical Garden Meise
World Checklist of Useful Plant Species 2020. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew