African Copaiba Balsam Tree (Daniellia oliveri)

Family: Fabaceae | Edibility: Edible (2/5)

Daniellia oliveri is a deciduous Tree growing to 25 m (82ft) by 25 m (82ft) at a fast rate. See above for USDA hardiness. It is hardy to UK zone 10. Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It prefers moist soil.

Edible Parts & Harvest Seasons

Edible Parts: Leaves

Harvest Seasons: Early Summer, Spring

Flavor & Culinary Uses

Tender young leaves - cooked and eaten as a vegetable. The young leaves are only eaten in times of scarcity. — Tender young leaves - cooked and eaten as a vegetable.; The young leaves are only eaten in times of scarcity.; The leaves are being used increasingly as a replacement for Vitex doniana leaves, which have become more difficult to obtain due to over-exploitation.

Habitat & North American Range

Wooded grassland with Butyrospermum paradoxum; gregarious in deciduous forests; wooded savannah to open forest on sandy-clayey humid soil; sandy soils on laterite; granitic rocks; on alluvial terrace of large marigot. (Zone 10)