Tooth brush tree…aka Shiny

Toothbrush

KUMUCHANJAASI (Euclea divinorum)

Derivation of the name: Khukhanya - shiny. Because the leaves are shiny, the tree is referred to as kumuchanjaasi.

Natural habitat and distribution in Bungoma: Habitat: woodland , dry bushland, rocky places.  Distribution: widespread in bushy outcrops, in woodland and secondary vegetation, on termite mounds and on rocky hillsides.

Description: Bark dark grey, cracking into squared segments with age. Leaves glossy green, leathery, narrowly elliptic up to 8 cm long, with undulating margin. Flower very small, white to cream, in small sprays which persist on the tree. Fruit a berry, fleshy but drying very fast, purple black when mature, up to 5 mm in diameter.

Toothache cure

Physical features: shape: shrub or small tree up to 10 m high, much-branched. Crown: rounded or variable.  Foliage: dense, evergreen.

Biological features: Tree/crop association: not always recommended. Suckers grow from the roots of the tree in quite a distance form the main stem and it quickly becomes a weed. Biomass Production: rather  fast-growing.

Other characteristics:  termite resistant, tolerant to drought and fire, wood very hard and durable. It is eaten by weevils.

Reproduction: seeds, root suckers.

Management: frequent cutting of young shoots of root suckers to remove the tree from cultivated land.

Ecological benefit: Quick natural regrowth after bush clearing to recover the soil for denuded land or after over grazing and trampling to prevent soil erosion.

Tree products and use: fuelwood, charcoal, farm tools, posts. The frayed end to twigs are used as toothbrush, the roots are chewed, the ash of the leaves are used for flavouring vegetables.

Ash as spice

Medicinal application: Leaves: hallucination, toothache, malaria. Bark/root: STD, stomach ache. Root worm infection, tooth medicine.