Harungana madagascariensis Guttiferae Lam. ex Poiret - World ...

Harungana madagascariensis 

LOCAL NAMES 

Creole (blod tri); English (orange-milk tree,blood tree); Hausa (alillibar); 

Igbo (ururtu); Luganda (mulirira,mulilira); Swahili 

(ngoningoni,mgondogondo,mdamu mdamu,mbura,kumamaji); Yoruba 

(elepo) 

BOTANIC DESCRIPTION 

Harungana madagascariensis is a small to medium sized bushy tree 4-7 

m in height, sometimes reaching 10-25 m; it is much branched with a 

cylindrical trunk. Crown is golden-green, deep and spreading with fine 

almost whorled branches. Bole is often rather angular and forked. Bark 

greyish or red-brown rather rough and scaly, frequently vertically fissured, 

with very small vertically arranged scales which flake off easily; slash 

bright orange, thin, rather wet and turgid, but will peel off in long strips, 

and when cut, brilliant, almost florescent orange latex flows abundantly 

and by it, the tree can be recognized immediately. This orange paint-like 

sap exudes if leaves are snapped off or if branches are broken. Most parts 

of the tree are covered with fine stellate hairs. 

Leaves opposite, simple, ovate or ovate elliptic, 6-20 x 3-10 cm, glossy, 

dark green above with prominent veining, the under surface with dense 

rusty hairs which may be partially lost by maturity but usually persist, and 

rather numerous lateral nerves, which are prominent beneath; young 

leaves at the ends of branches are distinctive and remain tightly pressed 

together until quite large, the brown lower surfaces quite characteristic; 

apex tapering; base broadly tapering to rounded; margin entire; petiole 1.5- 

3 cm long. 

Flowers whitish or cream, about 5 mm in diameter, sweetly almond 

scented, in dense many-flowered flat terminal heads (corymbose 

panicles), 8-20 cm in diameter, the stalks and calyx covered with short 

rusty hairs, bisexual; 5-merous; sepals glandular; petals with hairs on the 

inside and black gland dots; stamens in 5 clusters, each cluster made up 

of a few stamens joined for most of their length, with a sterile cluster, or a 

facsiclode between each fertile cluster; ovary 5-chambered. 

Fruits berry-like (drupe), 2-4 mm in diameter, greenish-orange becoming 

red when mature, in heavy, massed, terminal heads up to 25-30 cm in 

diameter, rather dry, with a crustaceous pericarp enclosing the 5 pyrenes, 

2-4 seeded. 

BIOLOGY 

In southern Africa, flowering can be observed from January to April 

followed by fruiting until October. In Sierra Leone, flowering begins 

sparingly in May, reaches its height in August and September and then 

tapers off up to about December; flowering is always very profuse. Fruits 

of the usually evergreen tree ripen from September up to January. 

Agroforestry Database 4.0 (Orwa et al.2009) 

Lam. ex Poiret 

Guttiferae 

Harungana madagascariensis foliage (Joris 

de Wolf, Patrick Van Damme, Diego Van 

Meersschaut) 

Harungana madagascariensis flowers (Joris 


Meersschaut) 

Harungana madagascariensis slash (Joris 


Meersschaut) 

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ECOLOGY 

H. madagascariensis occurs at medium to low altitudes in evergreen forest, at forest margins and along river and stream 

banks. It is a common and widely distributed tree from the Sudan to South Africa, often a pioneer when a forest has been 

cleared. The species is widespread in tropical Africa, and is found in clearings in forest regions and fringing forest in 

savanna regions. It is found all over Sierra Leone in young farm bush, usually associated with Trema musanga and 

Nauclea latifolia. In Uganda, it is found in forest edges and in secondary scrub, and is usually associated with Maesopsis 

eminii and Trema orientalis. The trees have a general brownish-yellow appearance in the field 

It form dense thickets which excludes, other species and can possibly become a permanent component of tropical 

rainforests, potentially making it weedy. 

BIOPHYSICAL LIMITS 

Altitude: 0-1 800 m, Mean annual rainfall: 1100-1800 mm, Mean annual temperature: 20-32 deg.C 

DOCUMENTED SPECIES DISTRIBUTION 

Native: 

Exotic: 

Central African Republic, Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Kenya, Lesotho, 

Madagascar, Namibia, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Sudan, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda 

Australia 

Native range 

Exotic range 

The map above shows countries where the species has been planted. It does neither 

suggest that the species can be planted in every ecological zone within that country, 

nor that the species can not be planted in other countries than those depicted. Since 

some tree species are invasive, you need to follow biosafety procedures that apply to 

your planting site. 


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The map above shows countries where the species has been planted. It does neither 

suggest that the species can be planted in every ecological zone within that country, 

nor that the species can not be planted in other countries than those depicted. Since 

some tree species are invasive, you need to follow biosafety procedures that apply to 

your planting site. 




PRODUCTS 

Fuel: H. madagascariensis is a source of firewood and is used in the production of charcoal. 

Timber: The wood is pink, orange-red to yellow and can have most attractive colouring in larger specimens. The tree is 

not used commercially because it seldom grows to a merchantable size, though the rather light wood is used to make 

poles for building houses. 

Tannin or dyestuff: Sap extracted from the bark of orange-milk tree is used to dye palm leaves for making mats and 

other craft items. 

Medicine: Sap is used in the treatment of scabies and as an anthelmintic (tapeworms), while leaves are used as a 

remedy for hemorrhages, diarrhoea, gonorrhoea, sore throats, headaches and fevers. Resin from the flower stalks is 

believed to ease colic and to check infection after childbirth, while a decoction of the bark is drunk as a remedy for 

malaria or jaundice. Roots are used to hasten breast development in young women while roots and bark are boiled in 

water, and the infusion drunk twice a day, to interrupt the menses. Young leaves are sometimes used a medicine for 

asthma and fruits are occasionally used in cases of abortion in the belief that the red juice averts bleeding. 


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TREE MANAGEMENT 

H. madagascariensis coppices easily and is a fast growing species which requires thinning after planting, for adequate 

growth. 

GERMPLASM MANAGEMENT 

Seeds should be kept in sealed containers and sown within 2 months. To prevent insect attack on seeds, ashes need 

to be added. 

PESTS AND DISEASES 

Seeds are susceptible to insect attack. 


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FURTHER READNG 

Beentje HJ. 1994. Kenya trees, shrubs and lianas. National Museums of Kenya. 



Coates-Palgrave K. 1988. Trees of southern Africa. C.S. Struik Publishers Cape Town. 

Dale IR, Greenway PJ. 1961. Kenya trees and shrubs. Buchanan’s Kenya Estates Ltd. 

Eggeling. 1940. Indigenous trees of Uganda. Govt. of Uganda. 

Hamilton A.C. 1981. A field guide to Uganda forest trees. 

Katende AB et al. 1995. Useful trees and shrubs for Uganda. Identification, Propagation and Management for 

Agricultural and Pastoral Communities. Regional Soil Conservation Unit (RSCU), Swedish International Development 

Authority (SIDA). 

Keay RW. 1989. Trees of Nigeria. Claredon Press Oxford. 

Kokwaro JO. 1976. Medicinal plants of East Africa. East African Literature Bureau. 

Pacific Island Ecosystems at Risk (http://www.hear.org/pier) 

Savill PS, Fox JED. 1967. Trees of Sierra Leone. Forest Department, Freetown. 

Williams R.O & OBE. 1949. The useful and ornamental plants in Zanzibar and Pemba. Zanzibar Protectorate. 

SUGGESTED CITATION 

Orwa C, Mutua A , Kindt R , Jamnadass R, Simons A. 2009. Agroforestree Database:a tree reference and selection guide 

version 4.0 (http://www.worldagroforestry.org/af/treedb/) 


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Harungana madagascariensis Guttiferae Lam. ex Poiret - World ...

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