47.214.193.24: Wikifruit: repair summary table house style

2026-09-27T02:35:03Z

Wikifruit: repair summary table house style

← Older revision		Revision as of 02:35, 27 September 2026
Line 1:		Line 1:
	{\| class="wikitable" style="float:right; width:~~300px~~; margin:~~0 0 1em~~ 1em;"		{\| class="wikitable" style="float: right; width: 320px; margin-left: 1.25em; margin-bottom: 1em;"
			\|-
			! colspan="2" style="background: #e8e8e8;" \| Velvet tamarind (''Dialium guineense'')
	\|-		\|-
	\| colspan="2" style="text-align: center;" \| [[File:Dialium guineense.jpg\|250px\|Dialium guineense tree in Jardim Botânico do Rio de Janeiro]]		\| colspan="2" style="text-align: center;" \| [[File:Dialium guineense.jpg\|250px\|Dialium guineense tree in Jardim Botânico do Rio de Janeiro]]

47.214.193.24: Wikifruit: independently reviewed article maintenance

2026-09-21T10:09:49Z

Wikifruit: independently reviewed article maintenance

New page

{| class="wikitable" style="float:right; width:300px; margin:0 0 1em 1em;"
|-
| colspan="2" style="text-align: center;" | [[File:Dialium guineense.jpg|250px|Dialium guineense tree in Jardim Botânico do Rio de Janeiro]]
|-
! Scientific name
| '''Dialium guineense''' [[#cite_note-1|[1]]] [[#cite_note-2|[2]]]
|-
! Common name
| Velvet tamarind [[#cite_note-5|[5]]]
|-
! Genus
| [[Dialium]] [[#cite_note-1|[1]]]
|-
! Family
| [[Fabaceae]] [[#cite_note-1|[1]]] [[#cite_note-2|[2]]]
|-
! Order
| [[Fabales]] [[#cite_note-1|[1]]]
|-
! Growth form
| Evergreen tree or shrub with a dense crown [[#cite_note-3|[3]]]
|-
! Native range
| Western and central tropical Africa, from Senegal and Nigeria eastward into Central Africa [[#cite_note-3|[3]]] [[#cite_note-4|[4]]]
|-
! Native habitat
| Lowland evergreen, humid, or dry forest; moist soils, sometimes brackish [[#cite_note-3|[3]]] [[#cite_note-4|[4]]]
|-
! Mature size
| Up to about 30 m, with smaller shrubby forms also described [[#cite_note-3|[3]]]
|-
! Climate and site
| Warm drier-tropics conditions; humid, fertile, deep soil and full sun; a rainfall range of about 2100–2600 mm is recorded for its natural distribution [[#cite_note-3|[3]]] [[#cite_note-4|[4]]]
|-
! Propagation
| Seed [[#cite_note-3|[3]]]
|-
! Fruit
| Small fruit with edible pulp enclosed by a hard brown shell [[#cite_note-5|[5]]]
|}

'''Dialium guineense''', commonly called velvet tamarind, is an evergreen African fruit tree with small pulp-bearing fruits enclosed by hard brown shells. It is an accepted species in the legume family, Fabaceae.[[#cite_note-1|[1]]] [[#cite_note-2|[2]]]

== Description ==

The species is described as an evergreen tree or shrub with a dense crown, reaching up to about 30 m although smaller shrubby forms also occur.[[#cite_note-3|[3]]] Its range extends through western and central tropical Africa, including areas from Senegal and Nigeria eastward into Central Africa. It occurs in lowland evergreen, humid, and dry forest habitats.[[#cite_note-3|[3]]] [[#cite_note-4|[4]]]

The fruit is typically about grape-sized and has edible pulp inside a hard brown shell.[[#cite_note-5|[5]]]

== Cultivation ==

=== Soil and water ===

Natural records place the species in lowland forest and in moist soils that can sometimes be brackish.[[#cite_note-3|[3]]] [[#cite_note-4|[4]]] The species cultivation account recommends humid, fertile, deep soil. In a seasonal climate, use a deep soil that holds moisture without remaining saturated, and treat the natural brackish-soil record as habitat context rather than a reason to assume salt tolerance in every planting.[[#cite_note-3|[3]]] [[#cite_note-4|[4]]]

=== Sun and humidity ===

Full sun and warm tropical conditions are recommended in the species cultivation account. The same account gives best daytime temperatures of about 21–25 °C and a broader tolerated range of about 15–30 °C, while describing the plant as suited to humid conditions and the drier tropics.[[#cite_note-3|[3]]] These ranges describe the cited cultivation account rather than a guarantee of performance at every edge of the range.

=== Seasonal changes ===

The species occurs in both humid and dry forest settings and is treated as a drier-tropics plant in cultivation.[[#cite_note-3|[3]]] [[#cite_note-4|[4]]] As a habitat-based cultivation inference, match irrigation to the local wet–dry cycle while keeping the deep root zone drained; the cited rainfall range of about 2100–2600 mm describes its natural distribution, not a fixed irrigation schedule.[[#cite_note-4|[4]]]

== Propagation ==

Seed is the documented propagation route for this species.[[#cite_note-3|[3]]]

== Flowering, fruiting, and harvest ==

Velvet tamarind produces small fruits with edible pulp enclosed by hard brown shells. The pulp-bearing fruit is the part associated with harvest and use; fruit may be eaten fresh or soaked in water for a beverage.[[#cite_note-5|[5]]] [[#cite_note-4|[4]]]

== Fruit and uses ==

The edible portion is the fruit pulp. It is eaten raw, and the pulp can also be soaked in water and consumed as a beverage.[[#cite_note-5|[5]]] The hard brown shell is not the edible portion.[[#cite_note-5|[5]]]

== Photos ==
[[File:Dialium guineense fruit.jpg|240px|Dialium guineense fruit, shelled fruit, and seeds in Mbour, Senegal]]

== References ==

* [[#cite_ref-1|↑]] '''[1]''' [https://api.gbif.org/v1/species/match?name=Dialium%20guineense GBIF species match: Dialium guineense].

* [[#cite_ref-2|↑]] '''[2]''' [https://www.gbif.org/species/2971007 Dialium guineense Willd. — GBIF species page].

* [[#cite_ref-3|↑]] '''[3]''' [https://tropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php?id=Dialium+guineense Dialium guineense — Useful Tropical Plants Database].

* [[#cite_ref-4|↑]] '''[4]''' [https://www.worldagroforestry.org/treedb2/AFTPDFS/Dialium_guineense.PDF Agroforestree Database 4.0: Dialium guineense].

* [[#cite_ref-5|↑]] '''[5]''' [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dialium_guineense Dialium guineense].

== Image credits ==

* ''Dialium guineense.jpg'' — Dialium guineense tree in Jardim Botânico do Rio de Janeiro; creator Marcus J. de A. Falcão; public domain (PD-self); [https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dialium_guineense.jpg individual file page].

* ''Dialium guineense fruit.jpg'' — Dialium guineense fruit, shelled fruit, and seeds in Mbour, Senegal; creator NoahElhardt; CC BY-SA 4.0; attribution to NoahElhardt and share-alike terms apply; [https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dialium_guineense_fruit.jpg individual file page].

[[Category:Fruit plants]]
[[Category:Fabaceae]]
[[Category:Dialium]]

Dialium guineense - Revision history

47.214.193.24: Wikifruit: repair summary table house style

47.214.193.24: Wikifruit: independently reviewed article maintenance