302 



Lagos : Nun (Niger) river ; Senegambia to Angola, and found in 

 Tropical America. 



The fruit is edible, somewhat like a Victoria plum in size and 

 general appearance, variable in colour — white, purple, red or yellow, 

 with spongy pulp ; in the West Indies they are eaten when fresh or 

 preserved ; in Angola they are eaten after being dried (Gossweiler, 

 Herb. Kew). 



The root, bark and leaves are astringent and used in cases of 

 diarrhoea and for various medicinal purposes in French Guiana 

 (Heckel, Ann. Inst. Col. Marseille, 1907, p. 139). 



The seeds contain an oil ; they are used as candles on the Gambia 

 (Allegre, Mus. Kew). 



The wood is hard, strong, heavy and close-grained ; specific 

 gravity of the absolutely dry wood is 0*7709 (Sargent, Silva 

 N. America, iv. p. 4) ; weight about 48 lbs. per cubic foot. 



May be propagated by seeds ; grows chiefly in maritime or swampy 

 situations. At Ambriz it grows about 1 ft. high in large circular 

 patches on the sea-shore ; 4-6 ft. high, in large clumps and belts 

 slightly further inland, but never grows beyond reach of the sea- 

 spray (Monteiro, Herb. Kew). 



Ref. — u Ghrysobalanus Icaco : Cocoa Plum," in Silva of N. America, 

 Sargent, iv. pp. 3-5. 



Parinarium, Juss. 



Parinarium curatellaefolium, Planch. ; Fl. Trop. Afr. II. p. 368. 



J^.—Volkens, Notizblatt, App. xxii. No. 1, 1909, p. 8, f . 2 ; Engl. & 

 Drude, Yeg. Erde, ix. f. 671. 



Vernac. names. — Idofun (Lagos, MacGregor) ; Abo or Abo- 

 Idofun (Yoruba, Thompson) ; Kobenoki (Nupe, Barter) ; Munabiliko 

 (Uganda, Dawe), 



Yoruba ; Lagos ; Nupe ; Kontagora ; Mt. Patti, Lokoja, and widely 

 distributed in Tropical Africa. 



Fruit about the size of a Victoria plum, mealy when ripe, but one 

 of the best of native fruits, Nupe (Barter) ; S. Nigeria (Thompson). 



Bark used in Agbo (MacGregor, Herb. Kew). 



The wood is used by the natives in S. Nigeria for building farm- 

 sheds (Thompson, List of For. Trees, S. Nig. 1910, p. 8) ; of no value 

 for export (Bull. Imp. Inst. 1908, p. 231). 



Grows 12 ft. high in Nupe, where it delights in high rocky 

 situations (Barter) ; shrub or tree in open bush, Kontagora (Dalziel) ; 

 low tree on Mt. Patti (Elliott) ; 25 ft. high on the plains Sierra 

 Leone (Scott Elliot) (Herb. Kew). 



Parinarium excelsum, Sabine ; Fl. Trop. Afr. II. p. 367. 



/// _Guillem. Perr. Rich. Fl. Senegamb. t. 62. 



Vernac. names. — Abbis (Timani, Unwin) : Ndauwi or Ndawi 

 Badji (Mendi, Unwin) ; Mubula (Uganda, Dawe) ; Songue (French 

 Guinea, Farmar). — Gray or rough-skinned plum. 



West Africa — Senegambia to the Bagroo River and in Uganda. 



Fruit edible, but the pulp is dry, small in quantity and insipid 

 taste (Fl. Trop. Afr. I.e.). 



A useful timber tree, Uganda (Dawe, Rep. Bot. Miss. Uganda, 

 1906, p. 44) ; one of the commonest trees in W. Ankole Forest, 

 altitude 5000 ft., where it attains a height of 90 ft. and girth 10-13 

 ft. (Dawe, Herb. Kew) ; used for building purposes in Sierra Leone 



