| Zanthoxylum chalybeum | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Rosids |
| Order: | Sapindales |
| Family: | Rutaceae |
| Genus: | Zanthoxylum |
| Species: | Z. chalybeum |
| Binomial name | |
| Zanthoxylum chalybeum Engl. | |
Zanthoxylum chalybeum is an aromatic deciduous shrub or tree within the family Rutaceae. It is also known as the lemon scented knobwood. [1]
A shrub or tree that can grow up to 12 m in height with a large crown; the trunk is furrowed, has woody knobs and often with recurved prickles, while the bark is pale grey in color. [2] Leaves arepinnately compound with 3-5 pairs of leaflets, glabrous or pubescent, they can reach up to 7 cm long and 3 cm wide, and are elliptic to lanceolate in outline. Inflorescence, ancillary racemes or branched panicles, flowers are yellow-green in color. [3] Fuit is ellipsoid in shape with black seeds.
Commonly found in East Africa from Ethiopia southwards to Mozambique. [2]
In parts of Kenya, Uganda and Somalia, a leaf decoction is used for the treatment of diarrhea, throat, stomach and chest pain. [4] [2] The leaves are also cooked and eaten as a vegetable or brewed and drunk as tea. Stem bark and root extracts are used in decoctions to treat malaria. [2]