Leucaena leucocephala (Lam.) de Wit

പീലിവാക

Family : Leguminosae (Mimosoideae)

Synonym : Mimosa leucocephala Lam.

Common Names : Ippilippil, Subaul, Lead tree, Leucaena

Flowering Period : November – April

Distribution : Originally from Tropical America; now Pantropical

Habitat : Cultivated for fuel wood and fodder

Uses : Edible leaves; edible seeds; edible fruits. Seeds used to treat diabetes and expel intestinal worms. Roasted seeds used as emollient and to increase menstrual flow. Decoction of bark and roots used as contraceptive or for inducing abortion. Young leaves and seedpods high in protein and Vitamin A, eaten as vegetable. Seeds used as bean substitute in tempeh (traditional bean cake). Wood used as firewood and charcoal. Also used to make small objects like fish-traps. Bark yields a brown dye. Exuded gum used in Asia as replacement for gum arabic. Used as cover crop and green manure. Also used as easily-digestible fodder for livestock.

Key Characters :

Trees; branchlets puberulous. Leaves bi-pinnate, alternate, pulvinate; lamina, obliquely oblong or obliquely-lanceolate , margin entire. Flowers bisexual, greenish-white, in axillary umbels, globose; calyx  5-toothed; petals 5, free; stamens 10; ovary superior; styles as long as ovary; stigma simple. Fruit a pod, linear-oblong, flat, dehiscent; seeds 15-20, brown, glossy.