''Entandrophragma excelsum'', is Africa's tallest indigenous tree native to tropical

East Africa East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territories make up Eastern Africa: Due to the historical ...

and occurs in eastern D.R.of the Congo,

Rwanda Rwanda (; rw, u Rwanda ), officially the Republic of Rwanda, is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley of Central Africa, where the African Great Lakes region and Southeast Africa converge. Located a few degrees south of the Equator ...

Burundi Burundi (, ), officially the Republic of Burundi ( rn, Repuburika y’Uburundi ; Swahili language, Swahili: ''Jamuhuri ya Burundi''; French language, French: ''République du Burundi'' ), is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley at the ...

, Uganda, Tanzania, Malawi and Zambia. This species is scattered in areas of upland semi-deciduous forest, in mid-altitude and

montane rainforest Montane ecosystems are found on the slopes of mountains. The alpine climate in these regions strongly affects the ecosystem because temperatures lapse rate, fall as elevation increases, causing the ecosystem to stratify. This stratification is ...

, at (925 –) 1280 – 2150 altitude. It is locally also found in

riverine forest A riparian forest or riparian woodland is a forested or wooded area of land adjacent to a body of water such as a river, stream, pond, lake, marshland, estuary, canal, sink or reservoir. Etymology The term riparian comes from the Latin word '' ...

.researchgate.net
Africa’s highest mountain harbours Africa’s tallest trees
Authors: Hemp Andreas, Reiner Zimmermann, Sabine Remmele, Ulf Pommer, Bernd Berauer, Claudia Hemp, Markus Fischer , January 2017 , Biodiversity and Conservation 26(1):1-11 , DOI:10.1007/s10531-016-1226-3

Description

''Entandrophragma excelsum''

dioecious Dioecy (; ; adj. dioecious , ) is a characteristic of a species, meaning that it has distinct individual organisms (unisexual) that produce male or female gametes, either directly (in animals) or indirectly (in seed plants). Dioecious reproductio ...

, deciduous large tree commonly up to 45 (–60) m tall. Bole branchless for up to 27 m, straight and cylindrical, up to 200 (–250) cm in diameter, with large buttresses up to 5 m high.prota4u.org
Entandrophragma excelsum (Dawe & Sprague) Sprague
In 2016 in a remote valley on the continent's highest mountain Kilimanjaro, northern Tanzania has been discovered Africa's tallest tree, it was measured at a height of tall, and a dbh and it is estimated to be 600 years old. This tree was discovered by Andreas Hemp at the University of Bayreuth in Germany, a researcher in plant systematics. The ten known tallest individuals of Entandrophragma excelsum ranged from 59.2 to 81.5 m and 1.24 to 2.55 m diameter.

Leaves A leaf (plural, : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant plant stem, stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", wh ...

pinnate on stalks to 60 cm or more with 8–16 large leaflets, almost opposite, each one oblong, 8 – 18 (–30) cm long and 4.5 – 8 (–14) cm wide. Inflorescence 25 – 30 cm long and 10 – 15 cm wide. Flowers unisexual, tiny, white or pinkish white. The wood is moderately lightweight, with a density of 460–530 kg/m³ at 12% moisture content.

Uses

The wood of Entandrophragma excelsum is not in much demand for local applications because it often warps and twists considerably upon drying. Moreover, it is not durable and not very attractively figured. Its occurrence in mountain regions often hampers commercial exploitation. The wood is suitable for the production of sliced and rotary veneer, and can be made into plywood of satisfactory quality. The wood is suitable for construction, flooring, joinery, interior trim, furniture, cabinet work, musical instruments, vehicle bodies, toys, novelties, boxes, crates, carvings, turnery, veneer and plywood. The wood is used for fuel and to make charcoal.

Vernacular names

Common local names for ''Entandrophragma excelsum'' tree:worldagroforestry.org
Entandrophragma excelsum
/ref> * in

Luganda The Ganda language or Luganda (, , ) is a Bantu language spoken in the African Great Lakes region. It is one of the major languages in Uganda and is spoken by more than 10 million Baganda and other people principally in central Uganda including ...

language: ''Muyovu'' * in Kiga language: ''Mushalya'', ''muyove'' * in

Rukonjo The lhukonzo (Konzo) language, variously rendered ''Rukonjo'', ''Olukonzo'', ''Olukonzo'' and ''konzo'', is a Bantu language spoken by the Konzo people of Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It has a 77% lexical similarity with Na ...

language: ''Kikula'' * in Runyankore language: ''Muyovu'' * in Rutoro language: ''Muyovu'', ''muhungura'' * in

Swahili Swahili may refer to: * Swahili language, a Bantu language official in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda and widely spoken in the African Great Lakes * Swahili people, an ethnic group in East Africa * Swahili culture Swahili culture is the culture of ...

language: ''Mkukusu''

References

External links

* newscientist.com
Africa's tallest tree measuring 81m found on Mount Kilimanjaro
30 November 2016 * books.google.co.uk
Flora of Tropical East Africa - Meliaceae
(1991); By Brian Thomas Styles, Frank White * zambiaflora.com
Entandrophragma excelsum (Dawe & Sprague) Sprague
* monumentaltrees.com
E. excelsum in a gorge south of Kilimanjaro National Park in Barangata
{{Taxonbar, from=Q5696675 excelsum Trees of Africa Afromontane flora

Description

Uses

Vernacular names

See also

References

External links