Family Fabaceae
A tall tree which can grow to 25m indigenous to the KwaZulu Natal region.
Umzimbeet's hard wood with its attractive coloration is valued for the
manufacture of furniture and small domestic implements. Today it is used for
making tough, bicoloured walking sticks which are sold to tourists.
It can also be used as a windbreak and harvested at 10-15 years for planks in
high rainfall areas. It also makes an attractive garden and street tree and it
does not have an aggressive root system.
It can be planted along pastures and fence lines to act as a windbreak and
shelters for animals. The stems are easily cut into planks when fresh. The only
animals to utilize the plants are baboons who strip and eat the bark, and some
butterflies whose larvae feed on the pods.
The powdered root can be used as a fish poison, but fish must be boiled before
consumption. The ground seed soaked in milk is used as a remedy for roundworm,
but with caution as consuming too many seeds is poisonous. It is reported that a
mixture of roots with those of Croton species with one part of lion's fat and
one part of python's fat is burnt in the house as a tranquilizer to dispel
worries; other recipes exist for sleep-inducing cures based on the roots. Ground
seed can be used as an arrow poison.
Info: http://www.plantzafrica.com
