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Zanha golungensis, the smooth-fruited zanha, is a shrub or medium-sized tree from tropical Africa, grown mainly for local timber and herbal medicine rather than as an ornamental. It is not a common garden or houseplant.
Zanha golungensis, commonly known as the smooth-fruited zanha, is a species of plant in the family Sapindaceae that is native to Africa. It is used locally for timber and herbal medicine.
Zanha golungensis is widely distributed across tropical Africa and can be found in Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Ghana, Guinea, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Malawi, Mali, Mozambique, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. It primarily occurs in deciduous woodland and forest at altitudes of 300–1,700 m (980–5,580 ft), occurring less commonly in evergreen forest and drier areas of riparian forest.
The wood of Zanha golungensis is not considered commercially valuable as timber, but is used locally for construction, firewood, and furniture building. Several parts of the plant contain saponins and the bark is sometimes used as a substitute for soap. Some sources claim that the fruits are not eaten by humans, but other accounts from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Malawi, Togo, and Uganda dispute this. The bark, leaves, roots, and twigs of Z. golungensis are widely used as herbal medicine for a variety of ailments, including aches and pains, fevers, headaches, gastrointestinal problems, nausea, respiratory problems, toothaches. Herbal preparations of Z. golungensis are also reported to be used to facilitate childbirth, treat disorders of pregnancy, and as a galactagogue.
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Zanha golungensis 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.
