THE NIGERIAN TIMBER TREES 245 
It is a light-loving tree, moderately fast growing for a 
palm. It is usually found growing gregariously in groups of 
a few acres up to hundreds of acres in extent. However, it is 
rarely thick enough to thoroughly shade the ground. Natural 
regeneration is good, even though in most areas annual grass- 
fires run through the trees and to some extent char the fruit. 
No plantations have been made of these species. 
The timber has not been exported, but locally it has been 
used for house-building, as well as for fences near the railway. 
The natives occasionally use it for house-building, but they 
do not know how to tap it for the wine. The leaves are some- 
times used for making temporary shelters. The fruit is some- 
times eaten, and has a pleasant taste. The nuts might be 
exported for making into buttons. 
Cyanastracez. 
Cyanastrum cordifolium. ITkoto. 
It has an ediblefruit. Found in the Benin province of Nigeria. 
Liliacez. 
Dracena sp. Dragon’s Blood. Ewanenimi (Benin). 
It has a very long, thin leaf of the usual monocotyledonous 
type and with a somewhat branched stem, with thin papery 
bark. 
It is fairly common in the Benin country. It is one of 
the few monocotyledonous trees of the forest, and thus easily 
distinguishable from other trees. The parallel veins of the 
leaf are very long and laid fairly close together. The stem 
is very porous and not woody, being more fibrous in type. 
It reaches a girth of about 4 feet and a height of 40 feet. 
Native Use.—The leaves are used by the natives medi- 
cinally ; and occasionally the sap is used to blind people. 
Dracena surculosa. Dragon’s Blood. Ope, Igbo. 
Is found in Olokemeji. 
Dracena cylindrica. Boundary tree. Peregun (Yoruba); Uk- 
pogun, Ogihu (Benin). 
Found in the Olokemeji Reserve. 
Dracena cylindrica. Boundary tree. Peregun (Yoruba); Uk- 
pogun, Ogihu (Benin). 
It has a wider and shorter leaf than the Ewanenimi tree, 
but again with the parallel veins, which are, of course, typical 
of the monocotyledon. It does not really form proper timber, 
but the stem is of a spongy, fibrous nature. It reaches a girth 
of about 5 feet and a height of about 50 feet. It usually has 
one stem, which is unbranched for a very considerable length, 
but sometimes a whole group will grow up in one place. 
