Description and Uses
Afzelia quanzensis (Lucky bean tree) is a
tropical
tree from
East Africa . It is mainly grown for its
timber crops
, which have a
very long shelf life. The crop is harvested by
total removing. It starts flowering after
4 -
7 years. The yield will be
0.5 m/year growth, but in its top season there will be a yield of
15 meter trunk. Other crop types include;
timber, ornamental, oil, . The
{missing data} is used as
minor food . The
seed/nut is used as "
anti-arthritic activity, " with
Crepenynic acid (0.9 mg/g -
1.0 mg/g) as its significant
phytochemical. There is
Azelia seed oil extracted by
steam distillation from the
tree's
seed/nut yielding
25% -
26% oil. The
tree's wood is called
Afzelia and has a density of
800 -
810 kg/m³. Regarding firewood production the
tree's growing speed is
medium, it's energetic value is
4100 ckal/kg and the wood's drying speed is
fast. After
55 years the
tree can be totally removed as it reached its commercial and ecological goal.
Afzelia quanzensis has a lifespan of
100 years.
Environmental limitations
The tree is
24 meters tall with a crown of
18 meters wide. The
tree prefers a planting distance of
400 cm and a row distance of
400 cm. It is
fast growing and
partial shade tolerant.
Afzelia quanzensis has a
deep root-system and it has symbiotic associations with the
Glomus intraradices and Pisolithus tinctorius fungi
(endo and ecto mycorrhiza). It is
able to fix nitrogen moderately with
"Rhizobiaceae bacteria. The name(s) or string of bacteria include(s)
"not applicable ". The
tree's flower-morphology is
uni-sexual and is pollinated by
insects.
Afzelia quanzensis is
deciduous in dry season and
not allelopathic and has
no thorns.
Afzelia quanzensis thrives in an altitude of
0 to
1300 meters above sea-level
(tropical). The minimum temperature is
7°C; optimally between
18 -
40°C. The optimal rainfall is
1450
mm/year. Without irrigation the annual rainfall should be between
600 -
1700mm (L/m²). The optimal soil-pH is between
5.0 -
8.0 in a soil texture of
sand. To salt it is
intolerant to wind
a bit tolerant and to fire
a bit tolerant.
Pests and Diseases
Afzelia quanzensis is susceptible to the following pests:
Pachydissus hector
. And it's susceptible to the following diseases:
(missing data) ,
,
.
Seed Propagation
Seeds are
orthodox and can be stored for
100 months. There are approximative
400
seeds/kg. The seeds can be propagated as followed:
- (1) Store harvested seeds dry at room temperature
- (3) Remove the seeds from cold to a permanent warm temperature.
- (3) Seeds germinate above ground (epigeous)
