Sesbania formosa
(F. Muell.) N. T. Burb.
White pea bush, Swamp corkwood, White dragon tree, Dragon flower tree, Water tree, Swampy corkwood
(c) Arthur Chapman, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), uploaded by Arthur Chapman
(c) Arthur Chapman, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), uploaded by Arthur Chapman
(c) geoffbyrne, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)
What to Eat
Edible parts: Flowers
Young leaves. Flowers - raw. Eaten in salads. Immature green pods and large fleshy pods are edible. This species has often been confused with S. Grandiflora in the past, and is a very similar species likely to have the same uses. In addition to the uses mentioned specifically for this species above, the following uses for S. Grandiflora almost certainly also apply here:- Flowers - raw or cooked. Added to salads, boiled as a potherb, fried or used in curries. Considered a delicacy in India. Rich in sugar and iron, with a flavour like mushrooms. The centre part of the flower is usually removed because it is very bitter. White flowers are generally preferred to red ones. Seedpods - raw or cooked. The long, narrow pods are boiled and eaten like string beans. The very young seedpods can be added to salads. The pods can be up to 50cm long and 8mm wide. Seed. The protein rich seeds are fermented into tempeh. Young leaves and shoots - raw or cooked. Added to salads, cooked as a potherb or added to stews. A clear gum obtained from the bark is used in foods.
Where to Find It
A tropical plant. It is native to tropical or monsoonal Australia. They grow naturally on black soils on the fringes of flood plains. They will grow on a wide range of well-drained soils. It grows from sea level to 100 m above sea level.
Australia, East Timor, SE Asia, Timor-Leste,
How to Identify
An erect slender tree. It grows 10-15 m high. The leaves have leaflets. The whole leaf is 20-40 cm long. It is divided into pairs of oblong leaflets. These are 3-6 cm long by 1-1.5 cm wide. They have a small pointed tip. The flowers are large and white. They are pea flowers. These are 7-12 cm long in groups along stalks with 2-7 flowers. The fruit is a long and smooth pod. It is 40-60 cm long and 0.5 cm wide. These are straight or slightly curved. They hang down. They are cream-brown when ripe. They contain many shiny brown seeds.
How to Grow
Plants can be grown from seed of cuttings. The seeds should be treated with hot water before planting.
Propagation: Seed - it has a hard seedcoat and may benefit from scarification before sowing to speed up germination. This can usually be done by pouring a small amount of nearly boiling water on the seeds (being careful not to cook them!) and then soaking them for 12 - 24 hours in warm water. By this time they should have imbibed moisture and swollen - if they have not, then carefully make a nick in the seedcoat (being careful not to damage the embryo) and soak for a further 12 hours before sowing. Cuttings.
Medicinal Uses
Infusions of the inner bark are used medicinally by the Australian Aborigines. This species has often been confused with S. Grandiflora in the past, and is a very similar species likely to have the same uses. In addition to the uses mentioned specifically for this species above, the following uses for S. Grandiflora almost certainly also apply here:- The leaves are aperient and diuretic. Crushed leaves are applied as a poultice to sprains and bruises of all kinds, swellings, rheumatism, itching etc. A tea made from the leaves is believed to have antibiotic, anthelmintic, antitumor and contraceptive properties. The bitter bark is considered as an astringent, febrifuge, tonic and an antipyretic, a remedy for gastric troubles, colic with diarrhoea and dysentery. A bark decoction is taken orally to treat fever, diarrhoea, dysentery and diabetes. The flowers are emollient and laxative. Juice of the flowers, put in the eyes, is said to relieve dimness of vision. Sinus congestion is reduced by taking a decoction of the flowers. The root is a well-known medicine for malaria. Root juices are used for poultices. A paste of the root is applied externally in the treatment of rheumatism.
Other Uses
The wood can be used as low grade fuel and pulp.. This species has often been confused with S. Grandiflora in the past, and is a very similar species likely to have the same uses. In addition to the uses mentioned specifically for this species above, the following uses for S. Grandiflora almost certainly also apply here:- Bark exudate and seed endosperm gums are produced. The clear bark gum is used in adhesives as a substitute for gum arabic. The bark yields tannins. At a very short rotation of 3 - 4 years, the tree is capable of producing much higher cellulose raw material per unit area than most other pulp woods. Even trees 3 - 4 years old can be pulped without debarking and are suitable for chemical pulping for use as cheap printing, writing, magazine and newsprint paper. The fibres are short. Fibre can also be blended with long-fibred bamboo pulp in suitable proportions to give good strength. On a 3-year rotation, about 41 t/ha per year of pulp can be harvested. The wood is rather light and not highly regarded as a fuel because it smokes excessively when burning. Having a weight of only 500 kg/square m, it burns rapidly without much heat. But its fast growth and availability within a year of planting make it a locally popular fuel wood. The wood should be well dried, as it deteriorates in storage and becomes corky, dusty and unfit for burning. Its calorific value is 17.91 MJ/kg, with a high ash content (6%) and low percentage of carbon (11.7%). The density of the wood increases with age, and the timber from 5 to 8 year-old trees can be used in house construction or as craft wood. The trunk has been used for poles but may not last long due to rot and insect infestation. The light wood is used in floating fishing nets. A fast-growing, nitrogen-fixing and short-lived tree. It should make an excellent pioneer species for re-establishing native woodland and establishing woodland gardens. The tree can be utilized as green manure, to provide shade and shelter, as a living fence, and for erosion control and reforestation of eroded hills.
Wikipedia
Source ↗Sesbania formosa (common names - White dragon tree, Vegetable humming bird, Swamp corkwood; Dragon tree; Dragon flower tree) is a leguminous tree native to northern Australia, first described in 1860 by Ferdinand von Mueller as Agati formosum, from specimens collected the banks of the Victoria and Fitzmaurice Rivers. It was transferred to the genus, Sesbania, by Nancy Burbidge in 1965. It is native to Western Australia and the Northern Territory, and grows in tropical wetlands, to heights of 20 to 30 feet, in closed forests or swampy sites, from sea level to 100 m.
Production
It is a very fast growing plant.
Names & Synonyms
References (16)
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