Didelotia idae (PROTA)

Plant Resources of Tropical Africa Introduction

List of species

General importance
Geographic coverage Africa
Geographic coverage World
Timber
Conservation status

Didelotia idae J.Léonard, Oldeman & de Wit

distribution in Africa (wild)

1, flowering twig; 2, flower; 3, valve of dehisced fruit with seed. Redrawn and adapted by W. Wessel-Brand

various parts of the tree (Virtual Field Herbarium)

trees

bole

slash

leaf

wood in transverse section

wood in tangential section

wood in radial section

Protologue: Blumea 12(2): 227 (1964).

Family: Caesalpiniaceae (Leguminosae - Caesalpinioideae)

Origin and geographic distribution

Didelotia idae is distributed in Sierra Leone, Liberia, Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana.

Uses

The wood of Didelotia idae, traded as ‘broutou’, ‘gombe’ or ‘bondu’, is used in Liberia for planks. It is suitable for light construction, light flooring, joinery, interior trim, ship building, vehicle bodies, furniture, ladders, toys, novelties, boxes, crates, tool handles, draining boards, turnery, veneer, plywood, hardboard and particle board.

Production and international trade

Trade statistics of Didelotia idae are not available. Other Didelotia species such as Didelotia africana Baill., Didelotia brevipaniculata J.Léonard and Didelotia letouzeyi Pellegr. are also traded as ‘gombe’ or ‘bondu’. Cameroon exported 18,000 m³ of ‘gombe’ logs in 1997, 5000 m³ in 1999 and 2300 m³ in 2000, and Gabon exported 25,000 m³ of ‘gombe’ logs in 1997, 8900 m³ in 1999, 5000 m³ in 2000, 4350 m³ in 2001, 4450 m³ in 2002, 8900 m³ in 2003, 8150 m³ in 2004 and 8450 m³ in 2005. However, as Didelotia idae is not present in these countries, these export figures must refer to other Didelotia species.

Properties

The heartwood is pinkish red, turning reddish brown upon drying, and is distinctly demarcated from the up to 7.5 cm wide, yellowish brown to reddish brown sapwood. The grain is straight or slightly interlocked, texture coarse and even.

The wood is medium-weight, with a density of about 650 kg/m³ at 12% moisture content. It must be dried with care to avoid checking and splitting, but mild schedules give excellent results. It takes 5–6 days to kiln dry boards of 2.5 cm thick to 12% moisture content. The rates of shrinkage are moderately high, from green to oven dry 4.2% radial and 8.1% tangential. Once dry, the wood is moderately stable in service. At 12% moisture content, the modulus of rupture is 107 N/mm², modulus of elasticity 12,400 N/mm², compression parallel to grain 55 N/mm², Brinell side hardness 19 N/mm² and Brinell end hardness 39 N/mm².

The wood works fairly well with both hand and machine tools. It planes to a good finish on tangential surfaces, but for radial surfaces a reduced cutting angle of 20° is recommended to prevent picking up due to the presence of interlocked grain. A filler is necessary to obtain nicely polished surfaces. The wood holds nails and screws well, and glues satisfactorily. The wood has good moulding properties and the slicing and peeling properties are satisfactory; sliced veneer is decorative. The heartwood is only moderately durable, being susceptible to attacks by fungi, termites and pinhole borers. The sapwood is susceptible to Lyctus attacks. The heartwood is resistant to impregnation with preservatives, but can be treated satisfactorily by pressure; the sapwood is permeable. Tests showed that the wood is suitable for kraft pulp.

Adulterations and substitutes

Didelotia idae can be substituted with other Didelotia species, such as Didelotia africana, Didelotia brevipaniculata and Didelotia letouzeyi. It has been traded in mixtures with ‘sipo’ (Entandrophragma utile (Dawe & Sprague) Sprague) timber.

Description

• Evergreen, medium-sized to very large tree up to 55 m tall; bole branchless for up to 27 m, straight, cylindrical, up to 150 cm in diameter, without buttresses but with slightly swollen base; bark surface smooth or slightly rough, with horizontal ridges, grey-green to dark brown, inner bark hard, fibrous, pink to bright red turning brown upon exposure, exuding a sticky, red gum; crown deltoid, fairly open, with ascending branches; twigs slender, hairy but becoming glabrous.
• Leaves distichously alternate, with a single leaflet; stipules narrowly ovate, 2–5 mm long, with bifid apex, caducous except for the base; petiole and petiolule together 2–6 mm long, with 2 caducous, 1–2 mm long stipels at the transition; leaflet ovate to ovate-oblong or elliptical, (2–)6.5–10(–22) cm × (1.5–)4–6(–11) cm, base cuneate to rounded, apex usually acute, margins entire, leathery, glabrous, pinnately veined with 6–8 pairs of lateral veins of which 2–3 pairs from near the base of the leaflet.
• Inflorescence an axillary or terminal, pendulous panicle 6–15 cm long, with branches c. 2 cm long along a slender rachis, densely hairy.
• Flowers bisexual, nearly regular, 5-merous; pedicel slender, 4–9 mm long, at apex with 2 broadly elliptical to ovate, concave, brownish red bracteoles c. 4 mm × 4 mm; sepals free, broadly ovate, c. 1 mm × 1 mm, hairy at margins; petals free, linear, 1–2 mm long; stamens free, (6–)8–12 mm long, pale purple, rising from between disk lobes; ovary superior, slightly rectangular, 1-celled, slightly hairy, style 6–8 mm long.
• Fruit an oblong pod up to 12 cm × 5 cm, flattened, pointed at apex, with 1–2 longitudinal veins, smooth, yellowish brown, dehiscent with 2 thin-woody, curling valves, few-seeded.
• Seeds disk-shaped or elliptical, 1–2 cm × 1–1.5 cm, flattened, smooth, dark brown.
• Seedling with epigeal germination; hypocotyl 5–10 cm long, epicotyl 4–6.5 cm long, hairy; cotyledons thick and fleshy, c. 12 mm × 6 mm, sessile; first 2 leaves opposite.

Other botanical information

Didelotia comprises about 10 species, with about 7 species in Central Africa and 3 in West Africa. It is particularly characterized by its 5 fertile stamens. The wood of several other Didelotia spp. is used for similar purposes as that of Didelotia idae.

Didelotia africana

Didelotia africana Baill. is a medium-sized to large evergreen tree up to 40 m tall, with a straight bole branchless for up to 25 m and up to 100(–200) cm in diameter, distributed in Nigeria, Cameroun, the Central African Republic, Equatorial Guinea and Gabon. The pale reddish brown or pinkish wood is suitable for construction, light flooring, joinery, interior trim, vehicle bodies, furniture, sporting goods, musical instruments, toys, novelties, carvings, pattern making, turnery, veneer and plywood.

Didelotia afzelii

Didelotia afzelii Taub. is an evergreen, small to medium-sized tree up to 25 m tall with a bole up to 60 cm in diameter, distributed in Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia and Ghana, but it has also been recorded from Cameroon and Gabon. In Sierra Leone the reddish brown, moderately hard and heavy wood has been used for making boards for the ‘warri’ game and is used for making charcoal; seeds have been used as counters for the warri game. A decoction of young leaves is applied as a remedy for piles.

Didelotia brevipaniculata

Didelotia brevipaniculata J.Léonard (synonym: Toubaouate brevipaniculata (J.Léonard) Aubrév. & Pellegr.) is an evergreen, large to very large tree up to 55 m tall with a straight, cylindrical bole branchless for up to 25 m and up to 150 cm in diameter, distributed in Liberia, Côte d’Ivoire, Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon and Congo. The reddish brown, medium-weight wood, with a density of 640–750 kg/m³ at 12% moisture content, is suitable for construction, light flooring, joinery, interior trim, ship building, vehicle bodies, furniture, ladders, sporting goods, toys, novelties, boxes, crates, tool handles, draining boards, turnery, veneer, plywood, hardboard, particle board and pulpwood.

Didelotia letouzeyi

Didelotia letouzeyi Pellegr. is a medium-sized to large tree up to 40(–60) m tall, with a straight and cylindrical bole branchless for up to 25 m and up to 150 cm in diameter, distributed in Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon and Congo. The reddish pink, medium-weight wood, with a density of 600–700 kg/m³ at 12% moisture content, is suitable for light construction, light flooring, joinery, interior trim, ship building, vehicle bodies, sporting goods, toys, novelties, boxes, crates, draining boards, turnery, veneer, plywood, hardboard, particle board and pulpwood.

Anatomy

Wood-anatomical description (IAWA hardwood codes):

• Growth rings: 2: growth ring boundaries indistinct or absent.
• Vessels: 5: wood diffuse-porous; 13: simple perforation plates; 22: intervessel pits alternate; 23: shape of alternate pits polygonal; 25: intervessel pits small (4–7 μm); 29: vestured pits; 30: vessel-ray pits with distinct borders; similar to intervessel pits in size and shape throughout the ray cell; (42: mean tangential diameter of vessel lumina 100–200 μm); 43: mean tangential diameter of vessel lumina ≥ 200 μm; 46: ≤ 5 vessels per square millimetre; (47: 5–20 vessels per square millimetre).
• Tracheids and fibres: 61: fibres with simple to minutely bordered pits; 66: non-septate fibres present; 69: fibres thin- to thick-walled.
• Axial parenchyma: 79: axial parenchyma vasicentric; 80: axial parenchyma aliform; 81: axial parenchyma lozenge-aliform; (83: axial parenchyma confluent); 92: four (3–4) cells per parenchyma strand; 93: eight (5–8) cells per parenchyma strand.
• Rays: 96: rays exclusively uniseriate; 106: body ray cells procumbent with one row of upright and/or square marginal cells; 107: body ray cells procumbent with mostly 2–4 rows of upright and/or square marginal cells; 115: 4–12 rays per mm.
• Mineral inclusions: 136: prismatic crystals present; 142: prismatic crystals in chambered axial parenchyma cells; 143: prismatic crystals in fibres.

(R. Shanda, P.E. Gasson & E.A. Wheeler)

Growth and development

Natural regeneration of Didelotia idae is often abundant, with the seedlings tolerating dense shade. In Sierra Leone flushes of young leaves appear in August–September, at the peak of the rainy season. Flowering is in May–June, but does not occur annually; fruits are ripe in August–November. In Liberia flowering has been recorded in the rainy season, in May and August, and fruits have been found in October–January. Didelotia idae does not regrow from stumps.

Ecology

Didelotia idae occurs in evergreen forest, in valleys and on slopes. It is also found in coastal thickets. It occurs from sea-level up to 350 m altitude, and its occurrence increases with rainfall up to about 2600 mm per year. In Sierra Leone and Liberia it does not grow in marshy locations and near water, but in Ghana it is mostly found on riverbanks and wet parts of evergreen forest. In Liberia it occurs scattered, often in evergreen forest dominated by Tetraberlinia tubmaniana J.Léonard, and densities of over 40 trees with a diameter over 60 cm per km² have been recorded. In Sierra Leone it is locally gregarious and even dominant, but in Ghana it is fairly rare.

Propagation and planting

The 1000-seed weight is about 670 g. The germination rate is usually high. In Sierra Leone seeds sown in January gave 90% germination in 15 days. Initial growth in the nursery is often slow, with the seedlings only being 30 cm tall after a year.

Genetic resources

Didelotia idae is included in the IUCN Red List, where it is considered to be at lower risk although near threatened. However, its status needs revision. It is locally common, but human activities such as mining, logging and commercial forestry have caused a significant decrease in the extent of its occurrence.

Prospects

The wood of Didelotia idae has good strength properties and is decorative, and can be used for a wide range of purposes. Its durability is relatively low, however, making it less suitable for exterior uses. It is not known to what extent the wood of Didelotia idae is currently commercially exploited and exported, but the wood of other Didelotia species with similar properties is exported from tropical Africa.

Major references

• Bolza, E. & Keating, W.G., 1972. African timbers: the properties, uses and characteristics of 700 species. Division of Building Research, CSIRO, Melbourne, Australia. 710 pp.

• Burkill, H.M., 1995. The useful plants of West Tropical Africa. 2nd Edition. Volume 3, Families J–L. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Richmond, United Kingdom. 857 pp.

• Fox, J.E.D., 1968. Didelotia idae in the Gola Forest, Sierra Leone. Economic Botany 22(4): 338–346.

• Gottwald, H., Knigge, W., Noack, D., Willeitner, H. & Sachtler, M., 1968. Anatomical and physical-technological investigations on four Liberian wood species. Technical Report No 11. German Forestry Mission to Liberia, Monrovia, Liberia. 51 pp.

• Hawthorne, W. & Jongkind, C., 2006. Woody plants of western African forests: a guide to the forest trees, shrubs and lianes from Senegal to Ghana. Kew Publishing, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, United Kingdom. 1023 pp.

• Oldeman, R.A.A., 1964. Primitiae africanae IV. Revision of Didelotia Baill. (Caesalpiniacae). Blumea 12(2): 209–239.

• Poorter, L., Bongers, F., Kouamé, F.Y.N. & Hawthorne, W.D., 2004. Biodiversity of West African forests: an ecological atlas of woody plant species. CABI, Wallingford, United Kingdom. 521 pp.

• Savill, P.S. & Fox, J.E.D., 1967. Trees of Sierra Leone. Forest Department, Freetown, Sierra Leone. 316 pp.

• Takahashi, A., 1978. Compilation of data on the mechanical properties of foreign woods (part 3) Africa. Shimane University, Matsue, Japan. 248 pp.

• Voorhoeve, A.G., 1979. Liberian high forest trees. A systematic botanical study of the 75 most important or frequent high forest trees, with reference to numerous related species. Agricultural Research Reports 652, 2nd Impression. Centre for Agricultural Publishing and Documentation, Wageningen, Netherlands. 416 pp.

Other references

• Allen, O.N. & Allen, E.K., 1981. The Leguminosae: a source book of characteristics, uses and nodulation. MacMillan, London, United Kingdom. 812 pp.

• Anonymous, 1988. Neuere Importhölzer aus Afrika: gombe/bondu (Didelotia idae Oldeman, de Wit, J.Léonard, Didelotia letouzeyi Pellegr., Familie der Caesalpiniaceae). Holz-Zentralblatt 114(41–42): 604.

• ATIBT (Association Technique Internationale des Bois Tropicaux), 2002. Statistics. ATIBT Newsletter 16: 23–28.

• ATIBT (Association Technique Internationale des Bois Tropicaux), 2005. Statistics. ATIBT Newsletter 22: 26–47.

• Aubréville, A., 1968. Légumineuses - Caesalpinioidées (Leguminosae - Caesalpinioideae). Flore du Gabon. Volume 15. Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle, Paris, France. 362 pp.

• Aubréville, A., 1970. Légumineuses - Césalpinioidées (Leguminosae - Caesalpinioideae). Flore du Cameroun. Volume 9. Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle, Paris, France. 339 pp.

• Chudnoff, M., 1980. Tropical timbers of the world. USDA Forest Service, Agricultural Handbook No 607, Washington D.C., United States. 826 pp.

• CIRAD Forestry Department, 2009. Gombe. [Internet] Tropix 6.0. http://tropix.cirad.fr/ africa/ gombe.pdf. December 2011.

• de Saint-Aubin, G., 1963. La forêt du Gabon. Publication No 21 du Centre Technique Forestier Tropical, Nogent-sur-Marne, France. 208 pp.

• Doumenge, C., 1992. La Réserve de Conkouati, Congo: le secteur sud-ouest. IUCN, Gland, Switzerland. 231 pp.

• Gérard, J., Edi Kouassi, A., Daigremont, C., Détienne, P., Fouquet, D. & Vernay, M., 1998. Synthèse sur les caractéristiques technologiques des principaux bois commerciaux africains. Document Forafri 11. Cirad, Montpellier, France. 185 pp.

• Hawthorne, W., 1990. Field guide to the forest trees of Ghana. Natural Resources Institute, for the Overseas Development Administration, London, United Kingdom. 275 pp.

• Hawthorne, W.D., 1995. Ecological profiles of Ghanaian forest trees. Tropical Forestry Papers 29. Oxford Forestry Institute, Department of Plant Sciences, University of Oxford, United Kingdom. 345 pp.

• Hawthorne, W.D. & Gyakari, N., 2006. Photoguide for the forest trees of Ghana: a tree-spotter’s field guide for identifying the largest trees. Oxford Forestry Institute, Department of Plant Sciences, Oxford, United Kingdom. 432 pp.

• Léonard, J., 1996. Les délimitations des genres chez les Caesalpinioideae africaines (Detarieae et Amherstieae) (1957–1994). In: van der Maesen, L.J.G., van der Burgt, X.M. & van Medenbach de Rooy, J.M. (Editors). The biodiversity of African plants. Proceedings XIVth AETFAT Congress, 22–27 August 1994, Wageningen, Netherlands. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht, Netherlands. pp. 443–455.

• Sallenave, P., 1964. Propriétés physiques et mécaniques des bois tropicaux. Premier supplément. Centre Technique Forestier Tropical, Nogent-sur-Marne, France. 79 pp.

• Vivien, J. & Faure, J.J., 1985. Arbres des forêts denses d’Afrique Centrale. Agence de Coopération Culturelle et Technique, Paris, France. 565 pp.

• Wilks, C. & Issembé, Y., 2000. Les arbres de la Guinée Equatoriale: Guide pratique d’identification: région continentale. Projet CUREF, Bata, Guinée Equatoriale. 546 pp.

• World Conservation Monitoring Centre, 1998. Didelotia idae. In: IUCN. Red list of threatened species. Version 2011.2. [Internet] http://www.iucnredlist.org. December 2011.

Sources of illustration

• Voorhoeve, A.G., 1979. Liberian high forest trees. A systematic botanical study of the 75 most important or frequent high forest trees, with reference to numerous related species. Agricultural Research Reports 652, 2nd Impression. Centre for Agricultural Publishing and Documentation, Wageningen, Netherlands. 416 pp.

Author(s)

• E.A. Obeng, Forestry Research Institute of Ghana (FORIG), University P.O. Box 63, KNUST, Kumasi, Ghana

Correct citation of this article

Obeng, E.A., 2012. Didelotia idae J.Léonard, Oldeman & de Wit. [Internet] Record from PROTA4U. Lemmens, R.H.M.J., Louppe, D. & Oteng-Amoako, A.A. (Editors). PROTA (Plant Resources of Tropical Africa / Ressources végétales de l’Afrique tropicale), Wageningen, Netherlands.

Accessed 31 May 2025.

• See the Prota4U database.