Previous plant

Cussonia kirkii

Next plant

This is actually Cussonia kirkii v. kirkii.


A tree by Robert V. Blittersdorff, Tropical.theferns.info.


Same plant after five years. This is Specks 0237 (Tanzania, Ruvuma Prov.).

Author:  Berthold Carl Seemann, 1866
Family:  ARALIACEAE
Origin:  Benin, Burkina, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Malawi, Mali, Mozambique, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia, Zaïre, Zimbabwe
Soil:  Mix
Water:  Medium
Sun:  Maximum
Thickness:  75-100 centimetres
Height:  11-15 meters
Flower:  Red
Propagate:  Seeds/Cuttings
Names:  -
Synonyms:  Should  be: Cussonia arborea, Hochst. 1848.
Cussonia barteri,
Seem. 1887.
Cussonia hamata
Harms, 1898.
Cussonia laciniata
Harms, 1898.
Cussonia djalonensis
A. Chev. 1908.
Cussonia nigerica
Hutch. 1910.
Cussonia homblei
De Wild. 1914.
Cussonia delevoyi
De Wild. 1927.
Cussonia longissima
Hutch. & Dalziel, 1928.
Cussonia tisserantii
Aubrév. & Pellegr. 1953.

This member of the Araliaceae family was described by Berthold Carl Seemann in 1866. It was already given the name; Cussonia arborea in 1848, and so far, I have not figured why that isn't the correct name. It's from tropical Africa. It grows in well-drained soil with quite some water in summer and lots of sun. It can reach eleven or even fifteen meters in height, and the flowers are small and red. The stem can grow from 75 to 100 centimetres in diameter.

The genera is named after Pierre Cusson, 1727-1783, a French physician, botanist and mathematician. The species after Sir John Kirk, 1832-1922, an English surgeon and plant collector in East Africa.