Common Name:

General Information

Gleditsia fera is a spiny, deciduous tree with a light, open canopy; it can grow from 3 - 24 metres tall. The bole is 40 - 45cm in diameter, armed with stout thorns up to 8cm long[, ].
The tree is harvested from the wild for local use as a source of saponins for medicine, as a pesticide and making soap. It is occasionally cultivated.

Known Hazards

The seed contains saponins[].
Although poisonous, saponins also have a range of medicinal applications and many saponin-rich plants are used in herbalism (particularly as emetics, expectorants and febrifuges) or as sources of raw materials for the pharmaceutical industry. Saponins are also found in a number of common foods, such as many beans.
Saponins have a quite bitter flavour and are in general poorly absorbed by the human body, so most pass through without harm. They can be removed by carefully leaching in running water. Thorough cooking, and perhaps changing the cooking water once, will also normally remove most of them. However, it is not advisable to eat large quantities of raw foods that contain saponins.
Saponins are much more toxic to many cold-blooded creatures, such as fish, and hunting tribes have traditionally put large quantities of them in streams, lakes etc in order to stupefy or kill the fish and make them easy to catch[].

Botanical References

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Range

E. Asia - south and east China, Vietnam, Laos, Philippines, Indonesia (Celebes).

Habitat

Gentle slopes, mountain valleys, forests, beside villages, near roads and in sunny places at elevations from 300 - 1,000 metres[]. Rain forests in the Philippines, at elevations up to 250 metres, occasionally to 900 metres[].

Properties

Medicinal Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Deciduous Tree
Height	16.00 m
Cultivation Status	Cultivated, Wild

Cultivation Details

Gleditsia fera is native to subtropical and tropical areas of southern Asia, being found from southern China to the Philippines and Indonesia. It is not very cold-hardy, with older trees only being able to tolerate light frosts. In addition, the tree has a habit, especially when young, of producing new growth until quite late in the season. Especially in areas where the summers are not hot, this new growth will not ripen fully and will be liable to be cut back by the cold in the winter. Older plants tend to lose this habit[].
Easily grown in a loamy soil, requiring a sunny position[]. Succeeds in most soils[] including sandy ones[]. Established plants tolerate drought[] and atmospheric pollution[].
Trees have a light canopy, they come into leaf late in the spring and drop their leaves in early autumn[] making them an excellent top storey tree in a woodland garden.
Plants in this genus are notably resistant to honey fungus[].
Although many species within the family Fabaceae have a symbiotic relationship with soil bacteria, this species is said to be devoid of such a relationship and therefore does not fix atmospheric nitrogen[].

Edible Uses

None known

Medicinal

A decoction of the leaves is used as a purgative[].

The pulp of the pods is rich in saponins and is used in local medicine[].

Agroforestry Uses:

Trees have a light canopy, they come into leaf late in the season and usually drop their leaves early[] making them an excellent top storey tree in a woodland garden[].
When planted close together and severely pruned, most Gleditsia species form good windbreaks and hedges. With their usually very spiny trunks and branches, the hedge becomes an effective barrier, and with its ability to fix atmospheric nitrogen, it also enriches the soil[, ].

Other Uses

The seedpod and pulp contains saponins and has been used as an insecticide[, ].
The saponins have been used to make soap[].

An extract of the seedpods is used as an ingredient in commercial cosmetic preparations as a cleanser, skin conditioner and surfactant[].

The wood is suitable for indoor construction purposes[, ].

Propagation

Seed - pre-soak for 24 hours in warm water and then sow in spring in a greenhouse[]. The seed should have swollen up, in which case it can be sown, if it has not swollen then soak it for another 24 hours in warm water. If this does not work then file away some of the seed coat but be careful not to damage the embryo[]. Further soaking should then cause the seed to swell. One it has swollen, the seed should germinate within 2 - 4 weeks at 20°c. As soon as they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual deep pots and plant them out into their permanent positions in the summer. Give the plants some protection from the cold for their first few winters outdoors.