Cussonia paniculata
Names: Mountain cabbage tree.
Afrikaans: Bergkiepersol.
Swahili: Umsenge; Umsengembuzi.
Source: plantzafrica.com; Van Wyk & Gericke 2000; Tetyana et al. 2002; Elsevier Ireland Ltd.
Use and cultural aspects
The wood is soft and light and was used for the brake-blocks of wagons. The leaves provide good fodder for stock and the Zulu name refers to this tree as goats' food. The thick root can be peeled and eaten raw as food or as a source of water. Traditional medical uses of Cussonia and Schefflera are to treat infections, inflammation and malaria.
Cussonia species are used in African traditional medicine mainly against pain, inflammation, gastro-intestinal problems, malaria and sexually transmitted diseases.
Ecology, Name
The flowers are pollinated by an enormous variety of insects that have wings e.g. bees, wasps, flies. When they are in full flower it sounds like a beehive. The flies and insects are attracted by the flowers' smelly nectar. The flowers may have lots of pollen too. The seed are not as easily parasitized by pests as Acacia and Rhus species. The birds feed on the ripened, black seed. The name Cussonia was given by Carl Peter Thunberg to commemorate the French botanist Pierre Cusson (1727-1783). The specific name refers to the panicle or branched inflorescence. It is believed that the name 'kiepersol' comes from the Portuguese (Quinta-sol) or Indian (Kitty-sol), words for a parasol or sunshade.
This tree is very attractive for insects, who like his nectar. Also it is food for goats. A indication for stage 11 could also be, that in old times the wood was used for barks, to control the speed and control is strongest in stage 11.
Botany
This is a short, thick set tree, rarely exceeding 5 m in height. It is sparsely branched with grey, longitudinal fissured, thick and corky bark. The stem is thick and squat. This plant is considered a pachycaul succulent on the basis of its swollen stem base or tuber which forms early in plants grown from seed. Roots are also thick and swollen. The tree is slow growing. The large, digitately compound, cabbage blue leaves are one of its most distinctive features. The leaf colour is in some part due to the thick waxy layers on the leaves, which may help protect them against severe frosts. The leaves are composed of 7-9, but sometimes up to 13 leaflets, springing from the end of a long stalk. The leaflets are up to 30 cm in length and the overall leaf can reach 60 cm. The leaflets of some forms are deeply lobed. New leaves are brighter green and emerge in a spring flush at the ends of branches.