Kumufutu - Black bird

Robert Sifuna
Apr 16
2 min read

KUMUFUTU (vitex doniana)

Derivation of the name: Efutu - fruit of the tree. The black colour of the fruit is like a small black bird called efutubile, usually found along water courses of rivers.

Natural habitat and distribution in Bungoma: Habitat: wet savannah tree, also open woodland and upland grassland where it occurs preferably along riverine fringes. Distribution: found in woodland, on rocky hillsides, common along rivers and in cultivated fields.

Description: Bark pale brown to grey-white with long, vertical fissures. Leaves opposite, palmately fingered, 5-7 partite, dark green above, rounded to acuminate at the tip, glabrous and shiny. Flowers in large axillary cymes. Fruit black when mature,15-30 mm long marked with white dots.

Physical features: Shape: medium to large sized tree up to 12 m in height, straight but short trunk. Crown: rounded, dense branching. Foliage: dense, deciduous.

Biological Features: Mulch: good quality, fair leafy biomass production, leaves start growing relatively late during the rainy season thus shade is reduced during early growth stages crops. The leaves decompose fairly slowly. Tree/Crop association: the tree is widely combined with crops, i.e maize, sorghum, finger millet, bananas, coffee and pulses.

Biomass production: fair to slow growing tree.

Other characteristics: termite resistant. Reproduction: natural seeding, root suckers.

Management: lopping and coppicing of individual branches, prolific regrowth after coppicing.

Ecological benefit: soil conservation along river banks.

Tree product and use: fruits, mulch, charcoal, firewood, timber, construction fodder, bee-hive, mortar, boat, mug, carvings, traditional tray for feeding animals. The charcoal from the branches is used for sterilising milk gourds and for flavouring milk.

Medicinal application: Bark/roots: STD Root: worm infection, eczema.