Misunderstanding Acacia tree - Kumulemba (acacia sieberiana)

Derivation of the name: Khulembana - causing misunderstanding. Lilemba - thorn of the tree.

Natural habitat and distribution in Bungoma: Habitat: wooded grassland, occasionally along river valleys. Distribution: fairly common in wooded grassland and dense bushland. Found along river banks and in plains with seasonally impeded drainage.

Description: Bark yellow when young, scaly and peeling in stripes on older trees. Spines greyish-white, in pairs up to 12 cm long. Leaves with 10-25 or pinnae, each with 14-52 pairs of leaflets. Flowers pale yellow-white, in heads, occur towards the end of the dry season. Pod shiny brown, thick and almost woody, up to 20 cm long. The seeds are released long after the pod has fallen.

Physical Features: Shape: this acacia tree can grow up into a large sized tree 25 m in height; it spreads when young, rounded with age. Crown: irregular and somehow flattened. Foliage: fairly light, briefly deciduous.

Biological features: Mulch: good quality. Tree/Crop association: occasionally the tree  occurs in cultivated fields, no competition with crops. Biomass Production: fairly fast growing.

Other characteristics: termite resistant, susceptible to borer attack, cattle like grazing under the tree for the tasty grass. Reproduction: seedlings.

Management: lopping, pollarding.

Ecological benefit: soil conservation, land reclamation in flooded plains.

Tree product and use: fodder, bee-forage, fuelwood, gum, fencing, live fence.

Medicinal application: Bark: chest pain.