inga

• selected for edem

  • inga edulis

    • miracle
    • products
    • fruit
    • legume
    • canopy layer
    • shader
    • 
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    • wiki
    • type: fast growing nitrogen-fixing tropical tree
    • properties

      • root: deep taproot with extensive lateral roots and nitrogen-fixing nodules

      • stem: upright, branching, semi-softwood when young, becoming sturdy with age

      • leaf: alternate, pinnately compound with 4–6 pairs of leaflets, elliptical with pointed tips

        • Leaf Length: 20–35 cm (compound leaf)

      • flower: cream-white, fuzzy, brush-like, fragrant, clustered in axillary inflorescences

      • fruit: long, cylindrical pods (30–100 cm) with pulpy edible white aril surrounding seeds

      • bark: thin, light gray-brown, slightly fissured on mature trees

      • timber: light, low-density, used for firewood and local construction

      • Environment: thrives in humid tropical climates with rich soils, moderate shade tolerance, and year-round rainfall

        • Climate: humid lowland tropics, tolerates periodic drought and temporary flooding
          • Sun: 600–900 W/m²
          • No Sun Days: 10–15 days
          • Water: 1500–3500 mm/year
          • No Water Days: 20–30 days
          • Humidity: 70–95 %
          • Fog Resistance: 10–15 days
          • Max Temp: 40 °C
          • Optimal Temp: 22–30 °C
          • Min Temp: 5 °C
          • Wind Damage: cold-dry, strong-salty
        • Soil: well-drained fertile soils with good organic matter, tolerates moderate acidity and temporary flooding
          • Soil Ph: 5.0–6.8
          • soi-type::loamy , clay-loam, alluvial
        • Spacing: 5–10 m depending on use (orchard vs. agroforestry canopy)
          • Good Neighbors: cacao, banana, cassava, piper, ananas
          • Bad Neighbors: eucalyptus, casuarina
          • Max Height: 15 m
          • Max Spread: 12 m

      • lifecycle

        • Longevity: 30–40 years
        • Germination: seeds germinate rapidly in 3–10 days, do not store well (recalcitrant)
        • Seedling: fast growing, reaches 1–2 meters in the first year under moist conditions
        • Mature: begins fruiting in 3–5 years, continues annually with high productivity under good care
        • Death: declines with water stress or fungal root issues, usually managed as part of successional systems

      • features: nitrogen-fixers, edible fruit, shade tree, pollinator-friendly, soil improver

      • layer: canopy, sub-canopy, successional

      • products: fresh fruit pulp, seed flour, shade mulch, firewood, green-manure, fodder, pollinator nectar

      • chemical compounds

      • compounds in fruit

        compound	amount per 100 g
        [[vitamin c	ascorbic acid]]
        thiamine	-
        riboflavin	-
        linoleic acid	-
        oleic acid	-
        arginine	-
        lysine	-
        glutamic acid	-
        glucose	-
        fructose	-
        sucrose	-
        total sugars	~25 g
        total phenolics (gallic acid eq.)	3.86–33.4 mg GAE
        total flavonoids (quercetin eq.)	1.75–19.4 mg QE
        tannins	-
        citric acid	~10.4 mg/g
        protein (pulp)	1.0 g
        protein (seed)	10.7 g
        lipids (pulp)	0.1 g
        lipids (seed)	0.7 g
        carbohydrates (pulp)	15.5 g
        carbohydrates (seed)	24.0 g
        [[dietary fiber	dietary fiber (pulp)]]
        [[dietary fiber	dietary fiber (seed)]]

        ---

      • compounds in seed

        compound	amount per 100 g
        linoleic acid	-
        oleic acid	-
        palmitic acid	-
        stearic acid	-
        α-linolenic acid	-
        γ-linolenic acid	-
        eicosapentaenoic acid	-
        tocopherols (β‑tocopherol, δ‑tocopherol)	-
        p‑hydroxybenzoic acid	-
        4‑methoxybenzoic acid	-
        p‑methoxycinnamic acid	-
        ferulic acid	-
        caffeic acid	-
        anthocyanins	-
        [[proteins	protein]]
        [[carbs	carbohydrates]]

      • plant part	compound	amount per 100 g
        leaves	epicatechin	–
        leaves	apigenin c-di-hexoside	–
        leaves	myricetin-o-hexose-deoxyhexose	–
        leaves	myricetin-o-deoxyhexose	–
        leaves	vicenin-2	–
        leaves	gallic acid	–
        leaves	catechin	–
        leaves	epicatechin	–
        leaves	myricetin-3-rhamnopyranoside	–
        leaves	[[quercetin	quercetin-3-glucopyranoside]]
        leaves	[[quercetin	quercetin-3-rhamnopyranoside]]
        leaves	delphinidin-3-glycoside (anthocyanin)	–
        leaves	other acylated anthocyanins	–
        leaves & bark	lupeol	–
        leaves & bark	α-amirin	–
        leaves & bark	olean-18-ene acid (oleanolic-type triterpene)	–
        leaves & bark	frideline	–
        leaves & bark	stigmasterol	–
        leaves & bark	prenol	–
        leaves & bark	α-tocopherol	–
        leaves & bark	24-methylenecycloartan-3-one	–
        leaves & bark	hexadecanoic acid methyl ester	–
        leaves & bark	hexadecanoic acid ethyl ester	–
        leaves & bark	octadecanoic acid methyl ester	–
        leaves & bark	phytol	–

      • operations

        • propagate plants: grown from seed immediately after harvest, can also propagate by stake or cutting in humid, protected beds
        • maintenance: prune to manage height and shape, especially in agroforestry systems, coppices well, add mulch and compost annually
        • harvest:
          • fruit: harvested when pods mature and become slightly soft, aril is eaten fresh or processed
          • seed: extracted from pulp, dried for flour or animal feed
          • leaves: used as mulch or fodder, collected manually
          • wood: harvested from prunings or old trees for firewood and biochar

    • Age of tree (years)	Trees per ha	Pruning (%)	Spacing (m)	DM of leaves (kg/tree)	DM of wood (kg/tree)	DM of leaves (Mg/ha)	DM of wood (Mg/ha)	Total above-ground biomass (Mg/ha)
      1	5000	0	1 × 2	0.4	0.3	2.10	1.65	3.75
      2	2500	50	2 × 2	1.1	2.4	2.80	6.08	8.88
      3	1250	75	2 × 4	3.0	17.7	3.78	22.11	25.89
      4	625	88	4 × 4	4.3	35.9	2.69	22.43	25.12
      5	313	94	4 × 8	5.8	65.4	1.82	20.48	22.29
      6	156	97	8 × 8	6.1	73.0	0.95	11.39	12.34

      • source

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