Description and Uses
Inga edulis (Ice-cream bean tree) is a
tropical
tree from
Amazone . It is mainly grown for its
fruit crops
, which have a
medium shelf life. The crop is harvested by
hand picking. It starts flowering after
2 -
4 years. The yield will be
300 pods/tree, but in its top season there will be a yield of
1500 kg/tree. Other crop types include;
fertilization, fruit, fuel, fodder, mulch, ornamental, The
fruit is used as
delicacy . The
{missing data} is used as "
plant part " with
{missing data} (0% -
0%) as its significant
phytochemical. There is
Inga edulis flower oil extracted by
steam distillation from the
tree's
flower yielding
0% -
1% oil. The
tree's wood is called
Icecreambean wood and has a density of
510 -
540 kg/m³. Regarding firewood production the
tree's growing speed is
fast, it's energetic value is
4700 ckal/kg and the wood's drying speed is
medium. After
12 years the
tree can be totally removed as it reached its commercial and ecological goal.
Inga edulis has a lifespan of
35 years.
Environmental limitations
The tree is
30 meters tall with a crown of
21 meters wide. The
tree prefers a planting distance of
300 cm and a row distance of
300 cm. It is
very fast growing and
intolerant to shade.
Inga edulis has a
shallow root-system and it has symbiotic associations with the
Glomus intraradices fungi
(endo-mycorrhiza). It is
able to fix nitrogen in large quanitities with
"Bradyrhizobiaceae bacteria. The name(s) or string of bacteria include(s)
"Bradyrhizobium liaoningense ". The
tree's flower-morphology is
hermaphroditic and is pollinated by
bees.
Inga edulis is
evergreen and
not allelopathic and has
no thorns.
Inga edulis thrives in an altitude of
0 to
1600 meters above sea-level
(tropical). The minimum temperature is
9°C; optimally between
16 -
27°C. The optimal rainfall is
1800
mm/year. Without irrigation the annual rainfall should be between
900 -
1800mm (L/m²). The optimal soil-pH is between
4.0 -
7.0 in a soil texture of
loam. To salt it is
intolerant to wind
intolerant and to fire
intolerant.
Pests and Diseases
Inga edulis is susceptible to the following pests:
. And it's susceptible to the following diseases:
(missing data) ,
,
.
Seed Propagation
Seeds are
recalcitrant and can be stored for
2 months. There are approximative
60
seeds/kg. The seeds can be propagated as followed:
- (1) Store harvested seeds in water or in the fruit at room temperature
- (2) Soak the seeds overnight in warm water before sowing.
- (3) press the seeds twice its size in the soil soil.
