African palmyra palm

The tall deleb palm, with its distinctive swollen trunk, defines the landscape of the Bahr el Ghazal savannas.

A stately palm growing to 20–25 m, with a straight, grey trunk that in older trees swells noticeably in its upper part, and a crown of huge, fan-shaped leaves. Male and female flowers grow on separate trees – female palms bear heavy, orange-brown, fibrous fruits with sweetish flesh. Germinating seeds produce edible, starchy shoots, and palm sap can be tapped from the stems. The hard, termite-resistant wood of the trunks is used for beams in building.

Significance in the country

The deleb palm is an important source of food in the lean season before the harvest – the Dinka, among others, gather its fruits and starchy shoots. Extensive groves of these palms grow on the flooded savannas of Bahr el Ghazal and in Equatoria.

Where it grows

On the savannas of the west and south of the country – in the Bahr el Ghazal region, in Equatoria and in western Jonglei.

More: Wikipedia (en)