Senna didymobotrya
Encyclopedia
Senna didymobotrya is a species of flowering plant in the legume family
known by the common names African senna, popcorn senna, candelabra tree, and peanut butter cassia. It is native to Africa, where it can be found across the continent in several types of habitat. It has been introduced
to many other parts of the world for use as an ornamental plant
, a cover crop
and a leguminous green manure
. In some places it is now naturalized in the wild, for example, in parts of Indonesia
, Australia
, Mexico
, and the United States in California
, Florida
, and Hawaii
.
It is a hairy, aromatic shrub
usually growing up to about five meters tall but known to reach nine meters at times. The leaves are up to half a meter long and are made up of many pairs of elongated oval leaflets each up to 6.5 centimeters long. The plant has a strong scent which has been variously described as being reminiscent of mice
, wet dog
, peanut butter
, and burnt popcorn
. The plant flowers plentifully in raceme
s of bright yellow flowers, with some flowers also occurring in leaf axils. The flower raceme has open flowers on the lower part with unopened buds at the tip covered in stark brownish green or black bract
s. The flower has five concave petals each 1.5 to nearly 3 centimeters long. The flower has ten stamen
s, usually seven fertile ones and three sterile staminode
s. Some of the stamens have large anthers measuring a centimeter long. The fruit is a flat brown legume pod up to 12 centimeters long which contains up to 16 bean like seeds up to a centimeter long each.
In Kenya, some cultures use it to prepare a special type of sour milk which is used mainly during festivities. This purposely puts its' toxicity into doubts.
The plant is poisonous! See GRIN-link and Blundell, M. 1987. Wild Flowers of East Africa. page 92.
Fabaceae
The Fabaceae or Leguminosae, commonly known as the legume, pea, or bean family, is a large and economically important family of flowering plants. The group is the third largest land plant family, behind only the Orchidaceae and Asteraceae, with 730 genera and over 19,400 species...
known by the common names African senna, popcorn senna, candelabra tree, and peanut butter cassia. It is native to Africa, where it can be found across the continent in several types of habitat. It has been introduced
Introduced species
An introduced species — or neozoon, alien, exotic, non-indigenous, or non-native species, or simply an introduction, is a species living outside its indigenous or native distributional range, and has arrived in an ecosystem or plant community by human activity, either deliberate or accidental...
to many other parts of the world for use as an ornamental plant
Ornamental plant
Ornamental plants are plants that are grown for decorative purposes in gardens and landscape design projects, as house plants, for cut flowers and specimen display...
, a cover crop
Cover crop
Cover crops are crops planted primarily to manage soil fertility, soil quality, water, weeds, pests, diseases, biodiversity and wildlife in agroecosystems , ecological systems managed and largely shaped by humans across a range of intensities to produce food, feed, or fiber.Cover crops are of...
and a leguminous green manure
Green manure
In agriculture, a green manure is a type of cover crop grown primarily to add nutrients and organic matter to the soil. Typically, a green manure crop is grown for a specific period of time , and then plowed under and incorporated into the soil while green or shortly after flowering...
. In some places it is now naturalized in the wild, for example, in parts of Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
, 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...
, Mexico
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...
, and the United States in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
, and Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
.
It is a hairy, aromatic shrub
Shrub
A shrub or bush is distinguished from a tree by its multiple stems and shorter height, usually under 5–6 m tall. A large number of plants may become either shrubs or trees, depending on the growing conditions they experience...
usually growing up to about five meters tall but known to reach nine meters at times. The leaves are up to half a meter long and are made up of many pairs of elongated oval leaflets each up to 6.5 centimeters long. The plant has a strong scent which has been variously described as being reminiscent of mice
Mouse
A mouse is a small mammal belonging to the order of rodents. The best known mouse species is the common house mouse . It is also a popular pet. In some places, certain kinds of field mice are also common. This rodent is eaten by large birds such as hawks and eagles...
, wet dog
Dog
The domestic dog is a domesticated form of the gray wolf, a member of the Canidae family of the order Carnivora. The term is used for both feral and pet varieties. The dog may have been the first animal to be domesticated, and has been the most widely kept working, hunting, and companion animal in...
, peanut butter
Peanut butter
Peanut butter is a food paste made primarily from ground dry roasted peanuts, popular in North America, Netherlands, United Kingdom, and parts of Asia, particularly the Philippines and Indonesia. It is mainly used as a sandwich spread, sometimes in combination as in the peanut butter and jelly...
, and burnt popcorn
Popcorn
Popcorn, or popping corn, is corn which expands from the kernel and puffs up when heated. Corn is able to pop because, like sorghum, quinoa and millet, its kernels have a hard moisture-sealed hull and a dense starchy interior. This allows pressure to build inside the kernel until an explosive...
. The plant flowers plentifully in raceme
Raceme
A raceme is a type of inflorescence that is unbranched and indeterminate and bears pedicellate flowers — flowers having short floral stalks called pedicels — along the axis. In botany, axis means a shoot, in this case one bearing the flowers. In a raceme, the oldest flowers are borne...
s of bright yellow flowers, with some flowers also occurring in leaf axils. The flower raceme has open flowers on the lower part with unopened buds at the tip covered in stark brownish green or black bract
Bract
In botany, a bract is a modified or specialized leaf, especially one associated with a reproductive structure such as a flower, inflorescence axis, or cone scale. Bracts are often different from foliage leaves. They may be smaller, larger, or of a different color, shape, or texture...
s. The flower has five concave petals each 1.5 to nearly 3 centimeters long. The flower has ten stamen
Stamen
The stamen is the pollen producing reproductive organ of a flower...
s, usually seven fertile ones and three sterile staminode
Staminode
In botany, a staminode is an often rudimentary, sterile or abortive stamen. This means that it does not produce pollen. Staminodes are frequently inconspicuous and stamen-like, usually occurring at the inner whorl of the flower, but are also sometimes long enough to protrude from the...
s. Some of the stamens have large anthers measuring a centimeter long. The fruit is a flat brown legume pod up to 12 centimeters long which contains up to 16 bean like seeds up to a centimeter long each.
In Kenya, some cultures use it to prepare a special type of sour milk which is used mainly during festivities. This purposely puts its' toxicity into doubts.
The plant is poisonous! See GRIN-link and Blundell, M. 1987. Wild Flowers of East Africa. page 92.