Argania spinosa - Argan

Description and Uses

Argania spinosa (Argan) is a tropical shrub from South West Europe . It is mainly grown for its oil crops , which have a long shelf life. The crop is harvested by hand picking. It starts flowering after 5 - 6 years. The yield will be 1, but in its top season there will be a yield of 8 kg/shrub/yr. Other crop types include; timber, fodder, apiculture, oil, fuel, ornamental, The fruit is used as inedible . The seed/nut is used as " anti-arthritic activity, " with {missing data} (0% - 0%) as its significant phytochemical. There is Argan oil extracted by cold pressing from the shrub's seed/nut yielding 30% - 50% oil. The shrub's wood is called Argan wood and has a density of 600 - 800 kg/m³. Regarding firewood production the shrub's growing speed is slow, it's energetic value is 4400 ckal/kg and the wood's drying speed is fast. After 100 years the shrub can be totally removed as it reached its commercial and ecological goal. Argania spinosa has a lifespan of 250 years.

Environmental limitations

The shrub is 11 meters tall with a crown of 9 meters wide. The shrub prefers a planting distance of 600 cm and a row distance of 900 cm. It is slow growing and intolerant to shade. Argania spinosa has a deep root-system and it has symbiotic associations with the Glomus intraradices fungi (endo-mycorrhiza). It is not able to fix nitrogen with "any bacteria. The name(s) or string of bacteria include(s) "Sinorhizobium americanum ". The shrub's flower-morphology is monoecious and is pollinated by bees. Argania spinosa is evergreen and not allelopathic and has thorns.

Argania spinosa thrives in an altitude of 0 to 1500 meters above sea-level (tropical). The minimum temperature is 0°C; optimally between 18 - 20°C. The optimal rainfall is 350 mm/year. Without irrigation the annual rainfall should be between 100 - 500mm (L/m²). The optimal soil-pH is between 6.0 - 8.0 in a soil texture of sand. To salt it is tolerant to wind tolerant and to fire a bit tolerant.

Pests and Diseases

Argania spinosa is susceptible to the following pests: . And it's susceptible to the following diseases: (missing data) , , .

Seed Propagation

Seeds are orthodox and can be stored for 10 months. There are approximative 500 seeds/kg. The seeds can be propagated as followed:

• (1) Store harvested seeds dry at room temperature
• (3) Remove the seeds from cold to a permanent warm temperature.
• (3) Seeds germinate above ground (epigeous)