| PLANT LOCATION |
Cassia siamea is an evergreen, flowering multi-trunked, large perennial shrub or small to medium-sized tree. Grows to between 5-13m tall with a 7m spread and a 20-30cm trunk diameter. Straight trunk initially, becoming crooked with age and develops rounded or irregular, spreading multi-branched crown with dense foliage and an open habit, drooping with age. Notes as growing up to 30m tall with a 50 cm trunk diameter in its native habitat. Leaves are glossy dark green with a paler underside.
Flowers are fairly showy, 2.5-3.5cm wide, bisexual, yellow. Seeds are round to obovate, flattened, 6.5-9mm long by 5.5 – 6mm wide, dark brown, smooth and shiny. Fruits at 5 years old. Ornamental tree. Used as a pioneer plant or soil stabilizer in shelterbelts as a windbreak tall hedge and for erosion control. Used as on streets and avenues and overstorey plants. Fast-growing.
Synonym: Cassia arborea, Cassia florida, Cassia gigantea, Cassia reticulata, Cassia siamea
Category
- Trees
- Tropicals and Tender Perennials
Height
- 30-40 ft. (9-12 m)
Spacing
- 20-30 ft. (6-9 m)
Sun Exposure
- Full Sun, Sun to Partial Shade, Light Shade
Danger
- Parts of plant are poisonous if ingested
Bloom Color
- Pale Yellow, Bright Yellow
Bloom Time
- Mid Spring, Late Spring/Early Summer
Edible Uses
The young fruits and leaves are eaten as a vegetable. During preparation the cooking liquid is replaced 3 times to remove toxins.The flowers and young fruits are used in curries.
Medicinal
In traditional medicine, the fruit is used to charm away intestinal worms and to prevent convulsions in children
The heartwood is said to be a laxative, and a decoction is used against scabies.
Agroforestry Uses:
The tree is grown to provide shade along roads and in cocoa, coffee and tea plantations. It is also planted as a dense windbreak and shelterbelt. It is pruned into hedgerows and used as a live fence around food crops. When used as a hedgerow, it effectively increases topsoil infiltration, reducing runoff and combating soil erosion.
The leaves are used as green manure, and a well-grown tree can yield 500 kg/year of fresh leaves. Senna siamea forms ecto-mycorrhizae and provides very useful mulch, especially in alley-cropping systems.
Other Uses
All parts of the plant can be used for tanning. The concentrations of tannin vary slightly from 17% in the leaves to 9% in the bark and 7% in the fruits
The heartwood is black-brown with paler streaks, sharply demarcated from the 6cm wide band of pale sapwood. The wood is medium-weight to heavy, hard to very hard, resistant to termites, strong and durable. The dark heartwood, which is often nicely figured, is used for joinery, cabinet making, inlaying, handles, sticks and other decorative uses.
Propagation
Seed - requires pre-treatment to soften the hard seed coat and allow the ingress of water.
This can be done by soaking the seed in a small amount of nearly boiling water (which cools down quickly and does not cook the seed) and then soaking the seed for 12 - 24 hours in warm water. Alternatively, a small area of the seed coat can be abraded, being careful not to damage the embryo
Germination of treated seed is about 90% within 60 days. Germination of untreated seeds is about 75% in 4 - 29 day.
