Ricinodendron

[4][5] It includes only one known species, Ricinodendron heudelotii, native to tropical Africa from Senegal + Liberia east to Sudan and Tanzania and south to Mozambique and Angola.

The tree is known as munguella (Angola), njangsa (Cameroon), bofeko (Democratic Republic of Congo), wama (Ghana), okhuen (Nigeria), kishongo (Uganda), akpi (Ivory Coast), djansang, ọrùnmọdò (Yorubaland), essang, ezezang and njasang.

moved to Schinziophyton The tree is fast growing and reaches a height between 20 and 50 m with a straight trunk which can have a diameter up to 2.7 m. Its crown is broad and the roots are big running.

Njangsa trees produce a fruit that are typically two or three lobed and contain two cells in which the seeds lie.

They have an odour reminiscent of oily chocolate, but their flavour is truly unique: subtly aromatic with a mild bitter aftertaste.

The dried and ground kernels are used as a flavouring agent in some dishes in West and Central Africa.

It is also used to cure various diseases as cough, malaria, yellow fever, stomach pain, rheumatism etc.

Seed husk and latex, leaf decoction and sap are also used to treat divers illnesses.

[8] Presence of njangsa helps to improve soil quality because the roots are colonized by mycorrhizae and because of its natural leaf litter.

Burned kernel shells deliver potassium rich ash and the cake remaining after oil extraction from seeds has high nitrogen content.

[8] In southern Cameroon, dried seeds are used for oware, a traditional mancala game called songho[what language is this?]

Today, available information about genetic resources is so little that most improvements occur by plant breeding.

This is important for the stability of the tree as well as for big exploration zone for water and nutrient uptake.

Because njangsa is dioecious, it is difficult to identify male and female trees before the reproductive phase.

Before transplanting the plants, they need to spend at least six months under shade and need a minimal size of 20–30 cm.

To avoid high water losses by evaporation, a mulch layer can keep soil moisture.

Husbandry: As long as the plant is young, weeding is very important to reduce competition for water and nutrients, so that a fast growth and development is possible.

The fruits are picked up by hand from the ground once they are ripe enough to drop from the tree (September and October).

Once harvested, the fruits are placed on a pile for two to three weeks so that the pulp is rotting faster and the seeds can be extracted easily.

Njansang is widely traded in Central and West Africa