''Geoffroea decorticans'', the chañar, kumbaru, or Chilean palo verde (green wood), is a small deciduous tree, up to 8 meters (25 ft) tall that inhabits most arid forests (montes or espinales) of southern South America. The chañar is cold and drought deciduous; it loses its leaves in winter, and possibly in summer if conditions get too dry. It is natural to Bolivia, Chile, Argentina, also present in Paraguay and southern Peru. It is a very characteristic tree in local culture and folk because of its vivid visual presence, propagation, and ancient ethnomedical uses. Geoffroea decorticans 4a

Morphology

The common name Chilean palo verde comes from the mottled green color of the trunks but does not seriously resemble ''

Cercidium ''Parkinsonia'' , also ''Cercidium'' , is a genus of flowering plants in the pea family, Fabaceae. It contains about 12 species that are native to semi-desert regions of Africa and the Americas. The name of the genus honors English apothecary ...

''. The chañar tends to be quite upright with a spreading canopy with both straight and mildly curving trunks. As trees mature the trunks and branches take on a sculptural quality with long longitudinal, irregular ridges and valleys. Along with this undulating trunk, large flakes of the bark peel off or decorticate (hence the species name ''decorticans''). The peeling tan to brown bark is eventually shed revealing the dark green, "immature" trunk beneath. The contrasting colors and textures created by this puzzle-piece pattern make the tree visually fascinating. The flowers are very visible, small, papery and yellow-coloured. The tree flowers in spring, either singly or in clusters. ''Geoffroea decorticans'' is unique among

legumes A legume () is a plant in the family Fabaceae (or Leguminosae), or the fruit or seed of such a plant. When used as a dry grain, the seed is also called a pulse. Legumes are grown agriculturally, primarily for human consumption, for livestock fo ...

in that it produces fleshy, oval pods that hold a single seed. Fruit are initially green but turn deep orange as they mature.

Distribution and habitat

This tree inhabits dry to arid spiniferous forests in a rather broad area of southern South America which extends mainly through I to IV regions of Chile and central and northern Argentina and throughout highland

Bolivia , image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg , flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center , flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...

, though it is also found in Paraguay, Peru and Uruguay. Its companions conforming the forest are usually ''

algarrobos Algarrobos is a barrio in the municipality of Mayagüez, Puerto Rico. Its population in 2010 was 4,383. Background Algarrobos is a coastal, rural barrio deriving its name from the Algarrobo tree. The Algarrobo tree is leguminous, with shiny leav ...

'', '' quebrachos'', and the

related ''Related'' is an American comedy-drama television series that aired on The WB from October 5, 2005, to March 20, 2006. It revolves around the lives of four close-knit sisters of Italian descent, raised in Brooklyn and living in Manhattan. The ...

and very abundant cavens. In Chile, ''G. decorticans'' grows in USDA climate zones 8b to 10, and withstands short frosts as low as –13 °C. The latter is the record low temperature for Santiago del Estero, Argentina, where ''G. decorticans'' occurs naturally. It is adapted to desert conditions and can withstand temperatures in excess of 40 °C. Geoffraea decorticans, fruit

Usage

The seeds and fruit, being edible, are valued as human and animal feed, and the yellow wood is suitable for carpentry and furniture making once dry. It is also used as fuel and to make cheap posts for fences. The fruits are very commonly used for both culinary and medical purposes in the processed form of chañar

arrope Grape syrup is a condiment made with concentrated grape juice. It is thick and sweet because of its high ratio of sugar to water. Grape syrup is made by boiling grapes, removing their skins, squeezing them through a sieve to extract the juice, a ...

. Extremely sweet, dark and thick, this is very similar to

honey Honey is a sweet and viscous substance made by several bees, the best-known of which are honey bees. Honey is made and stored to nourish bee colonies. Bees produce honey by gathering and then refining the sugary secretions of plants (primar ...

or vegetable

molasses Molasses () is a viscous substance resulting from refining sugarcane or sugar beets into sugar. Molasses varies in the amount of sugar, method of extraction and age of the plant. Sugarcane molasses is primarily used to sweeten and flavour foods ...

and is used in their place. It is locally known to alleviate sore throats and coughing.Cocina regional del norte argentino
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References

External links

* *Pictures and information o
Faboidae NotesImage of ''G. decorticans'' branch - sample stored at FieldMuseum (Chicago)
{{Taxonbar, from=Q2716561 Dalbergieae Trees of Argentina Trees of Chile Chilean Matorral Flora of northern Chile Atacama Desert Drought-tolerant trees Trees of Bolivia Trees of Peru Trees of Uruguay Trees of Paraguay