Gilbertiodendron dewevrei (abeum)

Gilbertiodendron dewevrei is found in Angola, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea and Gabon.

A large tree of lowland humid African forest, Gilbertiodendron dewevrei is often found in swampy areas. Despite growing up to 45 m tall and 2 m in diameter, it does not have buttresses (woody fins at the base of the tree to help support it). The leaves are compound, with 2–5 pairs of leaflets and have conspicuous stipules (leaf-like appendages) at the base of the leaf stem. It is an evergreen species and replaces its leaves almost continuously throughout the year. The young leaf shoots are reddish-purple in colour.

The woody pods (fruits) are large (up to 30 cm long), flattened and covered in brown hairs. There is usually a single longitudinal nerve along the pod face near the upper margin. When pods open at maturity, they do so with explosive force. Nevertheless, because the seeds are large and heavy, they do not travel far. It has been estimated that populations of Gilbertiodendron dewevrei migrate only about 100 m every 200-300 years through successful seed dispersal and germination.

The wood is used in west-central Africa for construction work (such as boat-building) and other forms of carpentry such as making agricultural tools, furniture and toys. In traditional medicine, a decoction of the bark is used to treat diarrhoea and dysentery and to heal sores. The seeds are eaten in times of food shortage; they are also eaten by forest rodents, elephants and gorillas.

Dried and alcohol-preserved specimens of Gilbertiodendron dewevrei are held in Kew’s Herbarium where they are available to researchers by appointment.

Specimens of the wood and bark are held in the Economic Botany Collection in the Sir Joseph Banks Building and are available to researchers by appointment.

During botanical inventory work in Cameroon, Kew botanist Xander van der Burgt noted that local tribesmen constructed umbrellas from the large juvenile leaves of this species, sewing the leaflets together with climbing stems from other plants. He also noted that their children made toys out of the large seeds.

The genus Gilbertiodendron is currently the subject of a taxonomic revision by Dr Manuel de la Estrella (University of Cordoba, Spain), and elements of the work are being carried out in collaboration with Kew botanists Barbara Mackinder and Xander van der Burgt. The latter is also leading a project looking at a related species, Gilbertiodendron ogoouense.

Search Kew's databases for more information on this species

The Wood Explorer - Gilbertiodendron dewevrei

Kew’s Leguminosae science team

More about the legume family

Buy 'Legumes of the World' by G. Lewis, B. Schrire, B. Mackinder & M. Lock (eds.)

Buy 'The Useful Plants of West Tropical Africa, Volume 3' by H.M. Burkill