| Sausage Tree | |
| Kigelia pinnata (K. africana) |
Unusual tree featuring 3-24" long sausage shaped fruits growing at the ends of long stems. The flowers are also quite showy and the fruit, while not palatable for humans, is popular with hippos, baboons, and giraffes.
Description: Medium sized tree to 45ft.
Hardiness: It is marginally subtropical and can stand
some frost and temperatures to 28F.
Growing Environment: Grows well in full sun. Needs moderately regular water, though it should be reasonably drought hardy.
Propagation: By seeds.
Uses: Mainly grown as a curiosity and ornamental, both for its beautiful red flowers and its strange fruit. There are also a range of traditional uses for the fruit, varying from topical treatments for skin afflictions, to treatment for intestinal worms. There are some steroid chemicals found in the sausage tree that are currently added to commercially available shampoos and facial creams.
Native Range: Found near riverbanks throughout much of South and Central Africa.