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Vachellia sieberiana
Also called Paper Bark Thorn, Flat Top Thorn, Paperbark Horn, Umbrella Thorn, Paperbark Acacia, Paperbark Thorn
Vachellia sieberiana is a thorny, flat-topped tree from southern Africa, grown mainly for forage, wood and gum rather than as an ornamental. It is a large tree in the wild, so it suits open land rather than containers.
Vachellia sieberiana, until recently known as Acacia sieberiana, is a tree native to southern Africa and introduced into Pakistan. It is used in many areas for various purposes. The tree varies from 3 to 25 m in height, with a trunk diameter of 0.6 to 1.8 m. It is not listed as being a threatened species.
This tree is widespread in its natural habitat and is not threatened. It is browsed upon by livestock and game such as elephant and giraffe.
Vachellia sieberiana is valued largely as a source of forage, medicine and wood. The inner bark is a source of fibre purposes such as stringing beads. The gum is edible and both livestock and game animals browse the tree and feed on the dropped pods, spreading viable seeds in their dung. The flowers of the tree make good forage for bees and bee hives are put directly in the trees to exploit the resource. The leaves of the tree commonly release toxic chemical compounds when the tree has been heavily browsed, some of the compounds may release hydrogen cyanide when ingested, which may be lethal to cattle. The fallen pods and foliage can provide lifesaving forage during dry times of the year.
Vachellia leucophloea · Vachellia nilotica subsp. hemispherica · Vachellia schaffneri · Vachellia tortilis · Vachellia xanthophloea · Roman Cassie · Bullhorn Wattle · Camel thorn · Sweet Acacia · Robber Thorn · Sweet Thorn · Babul
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Vachellia sieberiana by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
