Family - Fabaceae
Synonym - Lonchocarpus sepium, Robinia sepium
Vernacular names - Cheema konna, Seema konna
Habit - Tree
Habitat - Cultivated in fields and along fences
Distribution - Native of South America; Introduced and now widely grown in India
Flowering and Fruiting - March-May
Key Identification features - The tree grows up to 8m in height and has grey, lenticellate bark. Its branchlets are glandular-pubescent. The leaves are odd-pinnate and alternate, with a slender, pulvinate rachis. Leaflets are opposite, and have ovate to elliptic shapes. The upper surface of the leaf is glabrous, while the lower surface is glaucous and puberulent. The flowers are rose-pink, arranged in racemes. The petals are exserted, with a standard petal measuring. The stamens are 9+1, and the ovary is sessile.
Uses - It serves as a shade tree for crops like coffee, tea, and cocoa, acts as a windbreak, aids in soil reclamation, and is used for live fencing. Additionally, its leaves are valuable fodder for livestock, and its wood provides firewood. Gliricidia is also employed as a green manure crop and has traditional medicinal uses.
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