Scented&pod acacia (Acacia nilotica)

LUISE HOFFMANNTHIS tree mainly occurs from Otjiwarongo north westwards up to the escarpment, northwards to the Kunene River and eastwards up to Grootfontein.

Elsewhere in Africa it is found from Egypt to Mauritania and southwards into South Africa. It also occurs in Pakistan and India.

Generally it is a smallish single stemmed tree with a dense, rounded or flattened crown and growing up to nine metres high although often it only reaches a height of 5 to 6 metres. Frequently the crown is almost as wide as the tree is high.

Names: A. lekerruikpeul; G. Dufth uuml;lsenakazie. The specific name nilotica refers to the fact that this tree is well known from the banks of the River Nile, where it had a large number of medicinal uses.

According to www.kew.org, the web site of Kew Gardens, the name “akakia ” was given to the tree by Disocorides, the Greek philosopher, physician and ‘father of botany’, who lived from about 40 to 90 AD. The original Greek name means ‘spiny’, spines being a common feature of all African acacias.

The young stem bark is reddish brown and smooth, becoming black and fissured lengthways with age, while young branches are brown to grey. The thorns grow in pairs as is typical for almost all Namibian acacias.

They are straight and white to greyish white with a darker tip. On young growth they may be up to 17,5 cm long! Thorns on mature branches measure only 3 to 5 cm.

Generally young thorn trees frequently have longer and larger numbers of thorns than more mature trees, probably because the damage done by browsers affects a larger percentage of growth on a young tree than on a larger, older tree. The feathery leaves measure 3 to 5 cm.

The golden yellow, ball shaped flowers are similar to those of the camel thorn tree (A. erioloba) and of the sweet thorn tree (A. karoo).

However, the camel thorn tree is a much larger tree with a spreading canopy of strong branches. The most obvious difference is in their pods – those of the camel thorn being ear shaped and velvety and those of the sweet thorn narrow and sickle shaped and much more numerous.

The pods of the scented pod acacia are about 2 cm wide and can be 7 – 17 cm long. Usually they are fairly straight or somewhat sickle shaped with a distinct bump over each seed, resembling a string of beads (photo). Initially green and somewhat hairy, they turn black when ripe and often break up between the seeds when dry. The green pods are sticky when crushed and have a distinctive scent, hence the common names.

Nine subspecies of this tree are known but only subspecies kraussiana occurs in Namibia. The leaves and pods are eaten by various game species and by small stock. The heavy hard wood is used for fencing and fuel.

Medicinally, parts of the tree are used for ailments ranging from various stomach disorders, colds, eye diseases, menstrual disorders, to stop bleeding and as a stimulant.

The inner bark is used to curdle milk, the outer bark and pods are used in tanning.