Vachellia nilotica, more commonly known as Acacia nilotica, and by the of gum arabic tree,
Taxonomy
This species of tree is the
type species of the Linnaean genus
Acacia, which derives its name from Greek ,
akakía, the name given by early Greek botanist-physician Pedanius Dioscorides to this tree as a medicinal, in his book
Materia medica.
The genus
Acacia was long known not to be taxonomically monophyletic, and despite being the type species of that genus,
A. nilotica has since been moved to the genus
Vachellia, with the genus name
Acacia being reserved for Australian species; the principle of priority, which would normally prevent such a taxonomic change, was waived with a majority vote by the International Botanical Congress in 2005. The renaming of the traditional
Acacia to
Vachellia remains controversial, especially in Africa, where
V. nilotica is an iconic species and is widely referred to as "the acacia".
For the new classification of this and other species historically classified under genus
Acacia, see
Acacia.
The genus name Acacia derives from , which may come from the ancient Greek word , ákis, "thorn", for its characteristic thorns,
Description
Acacia nilotica or
Vachellia nilotica is a tree 5–20 m high with a dense spheric crown, stems and branches usually dark to black coloured, fissured bark, grey-pinkish slash, exuding a reddish low quality gum. The tree has thin, straight, light, grey spines in axillary pairs, usually in 3 to 12 pairs, 5 to long in young trees, mature trees commonly without thorns. The leaves are bipinnate, with 3–6 pairs of pinnulae and 10–30 pairs of leaflets each, tomentose, rachis with a gland at the bottom of the last pair of pinnulae. Flowers in globulous heads 1.2–1.5 cm in diameter of a bright golden-yellow color, set up either axillary or whorly on peduncles 2–3 cm long located at the end of the branches. Pods are strongly constricted, hairy, white-grey, thick and softly tomentose. Its seeds number approximately 8000/kg.
Distribution
Acacia nilotica or
Vachellia nilotica is native to
Egypt, across the
Maghreb and
Sahel, south to
Mozambique and KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, and east through the Arabian Peninsula to the Indian subcontinent and
Burma. It has become widely
naturalization outside its native range including
Zanzibar and Australia.
It is spread by livestock.
Uses
Forage and fodder
In part of its range, smallstock consume the pods and leaves,
[ ] but elsewhere it is also very popular with cattle.
In South Africa, milling of twigs and branches is applied to produce animal fodder. The milling helps to reduce the dispersal of seeds through the animals, which otherwise would contribute to further woody plant encroachment in the region.
Pods are used as a supplement to poultry rations in India. Dried pods are particularly sought out by animals on rangelands. In India branches are commonly lopped for fodder.
In West Africa, the pods and leaves are considered to have anthelminthic properties on small ruminants and this has been confirmed by in vitro experiments on .
In Kano of Nigeria, acacia pods have traditionally been used to dye leather a reddish-tinge.
Tooth brushing
The tender twig of this plant is used as a toothbrush
[Saurabh Rajvaidhya et al. (2012) "A review on Acacia Arabica, an Indian medicinal plant" International Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Research Vol 3(7) pp 1995-2005] in south-east Africa and the Indian subcontinent.
Gum arabic
The exudate gum of this tree is known as
gum arabic and has been collected from the
pharaoh times for the manufacture of medicines, dyes and paints. In the present commercial market, gum arabic is defined as the dried exudate from the trunks and branches of
Senegalia (Acacia) senegal or
Vachellia (Acacia) seyal in the family Leguminosae (Fabaceae).
The gum of
A. nilotica is also referred to in India as
Amaravati gum.
Lumber
The tree's wood is "very durable if water-seasoned" and its uses include tool handles and lumber for boats.
The wood has a density of about 833 kg/m
3.
Food and medicine
In India it's used as an ingredient in various dishes.
The Maasai people eat both the inner bark (phloem) and the fruit pulp boiled in water. The East african tribes living on the savanna use this plant medicinally to treat sore throat, cough, chest pains etc.
In Northern Nigeria it is called bagaruwa in Hausa language. Medicinal uses include soaking the tender bark in water to be taken against dysentery and pile. The fruits are ground together with the seeds and taken with honey as treatment against stomach ulcers.
Phytochemistry
Two new antiprotozoal diterpenes have been isolated from the root bark of
Acacia nilotica.
Propagation
There are 5000–16000 seeds/kg.
Gallery
File:Vachellia nilotica, Village Behlolpur, Punjab, India.JPG|Vachellia nilotica, Village Behlolpur, Punjab, India
File:Vachellia nilotica, at village Chaparr Chirri, Mohali, Punjab, India.JPG|village Chaparr Chirri, Mohali, Punjab, India
File:Acacia-nilotica.jpg|Compound leaf, seed, flower and seed pod
See also
-
List of Indian timber trees
-
Arid Forest Research Institute (AFRI)
-
Babool (brand) of toothpaste
-
Teeth cleaning twig(datun)
External links
