Prosopis juliflora
Encyclopedia
Prosopis juliflora is a shrub or small tree native to Mexico
, South America
and the Caribbean
. It has become established as a weed in Asia
, Australia
and elsewhere. Its uses include forage
, wood
and environmental management. The tree grows to a height of up to 12 metres (39.4 ft) and has a trunk with a diameter
of up to 1.2 metres (3.9 ft). It's known to hold the record for depth of penetration by roots. Prosopis juliflora roots were found growing at a depth of 53.3 meters (nearly 175 feet) at an open-pit mine near Tucson, Arizona
.
The plant possesses an unusual amount of the flavonoid
(-)-mesquitol
in its heartwood.
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, having a range of vernacular names, although no widely used English
one. It is called bayahonda blanca in Spanish and bayarone Français in French. Other similar names are also used, including bayahonde, bayahonda and bayarone but these may also refer to any other Neotropical member of the genus
Prosopis
. The tree is known by a range of other names in various parts of the world, including algarrobe, cambrón
, cashaw
, épinard
, mesquite
or mostrenco
. Many of the less-specific names are because over large parts of its range, it is the most familiar and common species of Prosopis, and thus to locals simply "the" bayahonde, algarrobe, etc. "Velvet mesquite" is sometimes given as an English name, but properly refers to a different species, Prosopis velutina
.
Names in and around Indian Subcontinent
, where the species is widely used for firewood and to make barriers, often compare it to similar trees and note its introduced status; thus in Hindi
it is called angaraji babul, Kabuli kikar, vilayati babul, vilayati khejra or vilayati kikar. The angaraji and vilayati names mean they were introduced by Europeans, while Kabuli kikar (or keekar) means "Kabul
acacia"; babul specifically refers to the Gum Arabic Tree (Acacia nilotica) and khejra (or khejri) to Prosopis cineraria
, both of which are native to South Asia. In Gujarati
it is called gando baval. In Tamil Nadu, in Tamil language
it is known as cheemai karuvel, a quite literal equivalent of vilayati babul. A vernacular Tamil name is velikathan, from veli "fence" + kathan "protector", for its use to make spiny barriers. In Andhra Pradesh, in the Telugu language
it is known as mulla tumma (ముల్ల తుమ్మ) or sarkar tumma.
In the Wayuu language
, spoken on the La Guajira Peninsula in northern Colombia
and Venezuela
, it is called trupillo or turpío.
Prosopis chilensis was sometimes considered to belong here too, but it is usually considered a good species these days. Several other authors misapplied P. chilensis to Honey Mesquite
(P. glandulosa).
of Ethiopia
, where it was introduced in the late 1970s and early 1980s, as well as in Australia, where it has colonized more than 800,000 hectares of arable land. In the Afar region its aggressive growth leads to a monoculture, denying native plants water and sunlight, while denying its nutrients with the animals that eat its pods or its leaves. The Regional government with the non-governmental organisation FARM-Africa
are looking for ways to commercialize the tree's wood, but pastoralists who call it the "Devil Tree" insist that P. juliflora be eradicated.
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
, South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
and the Caribbean
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
. It has become established as a weed in Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and elsewhere. Its uses include forage
Fodder
Fodder or animal feed is any agricultural foodstuff used specifically to feed domesticated livestock such as cattle, goats, sheep, horses, chickens and pigs. Most animal feed is from plants but some is of animal origin...
, wood
Wood
Wood is a hard, fibrous tissue found in many trees. It has been used for hundreds of thousands of years for both fuel and as a construction material. It is an organic material, a natural composite of cellulose fibers embedded in a matrix of lignin which resists compression...
and environmental management. The tree grows to a height of up to 12 metres (39.4 ft) and has a trunk with a diameter
Diameter
In geometry, a diameter of a circle is any straight line segment that passes through the center of the circle and whose endpoints are on the circle. The diameters are the longest chords of the circle...
of up to 1.2 metres (3.9 ft). It's known to hold the record for depth of penetration by roots. Prosopis juliflora roots were found growing at a depth of 53.3 meters (nearly 175 feet) at an open-pit mine near Tucson, Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
.
The plant possesses an unusual amount of the flavonoid
Flavonoid
Flavonoids , are a class of plant secondary metabolites....
(-)-mesquitol
Mesquitol
Mesquitol is a flavan-3ol, a type of flavonoid.Prosopis juliflora, a tree found in Kenya, shows unusual amount of -mesquitol from its heartwood....
in its heartwood.
Nomenclature
Vernacular names
This is a well-known plant in its native range as well as in IndiaIndia
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, having a range of vernacular names, although no widely used English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
one. It is called bayahonda blanca in Spanish and bayarone Français in French. Other similar names are also used, including bayahonde, bayahonda and bayarone but these may also refer to any other Neotropical member of the genus
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
Prosopis
Prosopis
Prosopis is a genus of flowering plants in the pea family, Fabaceae. It contains around 45 species of spiny trees and shrubs found in subtropical and tropical regions of the Americas, Africa, Western Asia, and South Asia. They often thrive in arid soil and are resistant to drought, on occasion...
. The tree is known by a range of other names in various parts of the world, including algarrobe, cambrón
Cambrón
Cambrón is a name for some plants, deriving from the Spanish language:* Certain algarrobo, bayahonda and mesquite trees in the amd the family cambron...
, cashaw
Cashaw
Cashaw is a vernacular name for several plants. The term is derived from the colloquial English dialects, in particular Jamaican patois. It can refer to:* Certain algarrobo, bayahonda and mesquite trees in the Fabaceae...
, épinard
Épinard
Épinard was a French Thoroughbred racehorse who was given the French name for spinach. He is considered a racing legend by French racing authority France Galop....
, mesquite
Mesquite
Mesquite is a leguminous plant of the Prosopis genus found in northern Mexico through the Sonoran Desert and Chihuahuan Deserts, and up into the Southwestern United States as far north as southern Kansas, west to the Colorado Desert in California,and east to the eastern fifth of Texas, where...
or mostrenco
Mostrenco
Mostrenco is a word deriving from the Spanish language, most famous as an origin of the English term "mustang". It can refer to:-Organisms:* Mostrenco cattle* Algarrobo, bayahonda and mesquite trees in the Fabaceae...
. Many of the less-specific names are because over large parts of its range, it is the most familiar and common species of Prosopis, and thus to locals simply "the" bayahonde, algarrobe, etc. "Velvet mesquite" is sometimes given as an English name, but properly refers to a different species, Prosopis velutina
Prosopis velutina
Prosopis velutina, commonly known as velvet mesquite, is a small to medium sized perennial tree. It is a legume adapted to a dry, desert climate. Though considered to be a noxious weed in states outside its natural range, it plays a vital role in the ecology of the Sonoran...
.
Names in and around Indian Subcontinent
Indian subcontinent
The Indian subcontinent, also Indian Subcontinent, Indo-Pak Subcontinent or South Asian Subcontinent is a region of the Asian continent on the Indian tectonic plate from the Hindu Kush or Hindu Koh, Himalayas and including the Kuen Lun and Karakoram ranges, forming a land mass which extends...
, where the species is widely used for firewood and to make barriers, often compare it to similar trees and note its introduced status; thus in Hindi
Hindi
Standard Hindi, or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi, also known as Manak Hindi , High Hindi, Nagari Hindi, and Literary Hindi, is a standardized and sanskritized register of the Hindustani language derived from the Khariboli dialect of Delhi...
it is called angaraji babul, Kabuli kikar, vilayati babul, vilayati khejra or vilayati kikar. The angaraji and vilayati names mean they were introduced by Europeans, while Kabuli kikar (or keekar) means "Kabul
Kabul
Kabul , spelt Caubul in some classic literatures, is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan. It is also the capital of the Kabul Province, located in the eastern section of Afghanistan...
acacia"; babul specifically refers to the Gum Arabic Tree (Acacia nilotica) and khejra (or khejri) to Prosopis cineraria
Prosopis cineraria
Prosopis cineraria is a species of flowering tree in the pea family, Fabaceae, that is native to arid portions of Western and South Asia, such as the Arabian and Thar Deserts...
, both of which are native to South Asia. In Gujarati
Gujarati language
Gujarati is an Indo-Aryan language, and part of the greater Indo-European language family. It is derived from a language called Old Gujarati which is the ancestor language of the modern Gujarati and Rajasthani languages...
it is called gando baval. In Tamil Nadu, in Tamil language
Tamil language
Tamil is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by Tamil people of the Indian subcontinent. It has official status in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and in the Indian union territory of Pondicherry. Tamil is also an official language of Sri Lanka and Singapore...
it is known as cheemai karuvel, a quite literal equivalent of vilayati babul. A vernacular Tamil name is velikathan, from veli "fence" + kathan "protector", for its use to make spiny barriers. In Andhra Pradesh, in the Telugu language
Telugu language
Telugu is a Central Dravidian language primarily spoken in the state of Andhra Pradesh, India, where it is an official language. It is also spoken in the neighbouring states of Chattisgarh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Orissa and Tamil Nadu...
it is known as mulla tumma (ముల్ల తుమ్మ) or sarkar tumma.
In the Wayuu language
Wayuu language
The Wayuu language, or Goajiro , is spoken by 305,000 indigenous Wayuu people in northeastern Colombia and northwestern Venezuela on the Guajira Peninsula....
, spoken on the La Guajira Peninsula in northern Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
and Venezuela
Venezuela
Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...
, it is called trupillo or turpío.
Synonyms
This plant has been described under a number of now-invalid scientific names:- Acacia cumanensis Willd.
- Acacia juliflora (Sw.) Willd.
- Acacia salinarum (Vahl) DC.
- Algarobia juliflora (Sw.) Heynh.
- Algarobia juliflora as defined by G. BenthamGeorge BenthamGeorge Bentham CMG FRS was an English botanist, characterized by Duane Isely as "the premier systematic botanist of the nineteenth century".- Formative years :...
refers only to the typical variety, Prosopis juliflora var. juliflora (Sw.) DC- Desmanthus salinarum (Vahl) Steud.
- Mimosa juliflora Sw.
- Mimosa piliflora Sw.
- Mimosa salinarum Vahl
- Neltuma bakeri Britton & Rose
- Neltuma juliflora (Sw.) Raf.
- Neltuma occidenatlis Britton & Rose
- Neltuma occidentalis Britton & Rose
- Neltuma pallescens Britton & Rose
- Prosopis bracteolata DC.
- Prosopis cumanensis (Willd.) Kunth
- Prosopis domingensis DC.
- Prosopis dulcis Kunth var. domingensis (DC.)Benth.
- C.S. KunthCarl Sigismund KunthCarl Sigismund Kunth , also Karl Sigismund Kunth or anglicized as Charles Sigismund Kunth, was a German botanist...
's Prosopis dulcis is Smooth Mesquite (P. laevigata), while P. dulcis as described by W.J. HookerWilliam Jackson HookerSir William Jackson Hooker, FRS was an English systematic botanist and organiser. He held the post of Regius Professor of Botany at Glasgow University, and was the first Director of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. He enjoyed the friendship and support of Sir Joseph Banks for his exploring,...
is CaldénCaldenCalden is a municipality in the district of Kassel, in Hesse, Germany. It is situated 12 kilometers northwest of Kassel.- References :...
(P. caldenia).- Prosopis vidaliana Fern.-Vill.
Prosopis chilensis was sometimes considered to belong here too, but it is usually considered a good species these days. Several other authors misapplied P. chilensis to Honey Mesquite
Honey Mesquite
Prosopis glandulosa, commonly known as honey mesquite, is a species of small to medium-sized flowering tree in the legume family, Fabaceae. It is native to the Southwestern United States and Mexico, growing as far north as southern Kansas and as far east as the eastern fifth of Texas, where...
(P. glandulosa).
Invasive status
P. juliflora is considered a noxious invader in the Afar RegionAfar Region
Afar is one of the nine ethnic divisions of Ethiopia, and is the homeland of the Afar people. Formerly known as Region 2, its current capital is Asayita; a new capital named Semera on the paved Awash - Asseb highway is under construction....
of Ethiopia
Ethiopia
Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...
, where it was introduced in the late 1970s and early 1980s, as well as in Australia, where it has colonized more than 800,000 hectares of arable land. In the Afar region its aggressive growth leads to a monoculture, denying native plants water and sunlight, while denying its nutrients with the animals that eat its pods or its leaves. The Regional government with the non-governmental organisation FARM-Africa
FARM-Africa
FARM-Africa is a UK-based charitable organization set up in 1985 that works with farmers, pastoralists and forest communities in eastern Africa. The charity provides training to help these groups to grow more food, look after their livestock and make a living using their natural resources...
are looking for ways to commercialize the tree's wood, but pastoralists who call it the "Devil Tree" insist that P. juliflora be eradicated.