Acacia asak (Bekele-Tesemma, 2007)

← Acacia abyssinica

Bekele-Tesemma, Useful trees and shrubs for Ethiopia, 2007 Acacia asak (Bekele-Tesemma, 2007)

Acacia brevispica →

Acacia asak

Fabaceae

Indigenous

Common names

• English: Wait-a-bit thorn
• Afargna: Eibeto
• Amargna: Sebansa
• Tigrigna: Guadade, Haq, Sellewa
• Somaligna: Adad‑medu, Gwider, Rede

Ecology

This shrub or tree is confined to The Sudan Somalia, Arabia, Ethiopia and Eritrea. In Ethiopia it is found in Dry and Moist Kolla agroclimatic zones in Welo, Tigray and Harerge regions, mainly along water courses, on rocky ground, and in deciduous bushland, 400–1,900 m.

Uses

Firewood, charcoal, timber (construction), fodder (camel browse).

Description

A tree or shrub up to 10 m.

• BARK: On young stems yellow and peeling, on older stems dark grey and fissured.
• THORNS: Variable, short, straight or re-curved, single, or in threes, the central thorn hooked.
• LEAVES: Compound, with 3–6 widely spaced pairs of pinnae, on a stalk to 5 cm, leaflets grey-green with rounded tips.
• FLOWERS: White-pale yellow on spikes to 11 cm.
• FRUIT: Straight flat pods, brown-purple and smooth to 12 cm long, breaking open. Propagation Does well from seedlings. Direct sowing at site is also possible.

Seed

5,000–6,000 seed per kg.

• Treatment: Not necessary.
• Storage: Can be stored for a long period.

Management

It tends to be multi-stem. Stem reduction and pruning will help to develop trunk and increase ease of movement in between adjacent trees.