Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
KHAYA SENEGALENSIS
Botanical Name —
Khaya senegalensis
(Desr.) A. Juss.
Synonym —
Swietenia senegalensis
Desr.
Family —
Meliaceae
Common Names —
African mahogany, Senegal mahogany, cail cedrat, dry zone mahogany
African Names —
Ashanti: kuntunkuri; Biron: korobaa; Dagarti (Mampridi, Moshi, Nankani,
Wala): koko, koka; Fulani: dalehi; Hausa: mdachi; Igbo: ono; Itsekiri: okpe; Kanuri: kagam; Tiv:
ha; Yoruba: ogonwo
Description —
Khaya senegalensis
is a tall evergreen tree, 15-30 m high, up to 3 m in diam-
eter, with a clean bole 8-16 m, dark gray bark, with small, thin, reddish-tinged scales. The slash is
dark pink to crimson, exuding a red bitter sap. The plant is recognized by its round evergreen crown
of dark shining foliage. Leaves are pinnate, alternate, compound, and without stipules. The leaflets
are 3-4 in number, rarely 5-7, usually in opposite pairs, oblong to narrowly oblong-elliptic, 4-12
cm long, 2-5 cm wide, apex acute to shortly acuminate, base rounded, margins entire, pale green,
and with 4-8 pairs of lateral nerves. The flowers, about 4 mm long, are borne individually in con-
spicuous panicles, with pale green sepals, cream petals, and a bright red disk beneath the (4-celled)
ovary. It produces a characteristic, almost spherical, woody capsule, 4-6 cm in diameter, opening
by 4 valves from the apex. Six or more seeds are contained in a cell, broadly transversely ellipsoid
to flat, about 25 mm long, 18 mm wide, with margins narrowly winged. The wood is valued as a
savanna mahogany, although of an inferior quality to the wood of
K. ivorensis
.
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Habitat and Distribution —
The species is found in the savanna woodland and riverine forests.
It occurs from West Africa to the Sudan and has been found growing in Gambia, Mali, Guinea,
Senegal, Guinea Bissau, Sierra Leone, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Togo, Benin, Niger, Nigeria, and
Cameroun. It is also found in Chad, Sudan, Uganda, and Central African Republic.
Ethnomedicinal Uses —
Khaya
is used extensively in West Africa as a bitter tonic and a fever
remedy. Its name,
Quiquiona du Senegal
, in Francophone West Africa, is attributed to its use in
the treatment of malaria. It is also used as a vermifuge, taeniacide, and antimicrobial agent for the
