''Xylopia quintasii'', commonly known as Elo, is a species of

evergreen In botany, an evergreen is a plant which has Leaf, foliage that remains green and functional throughout the year. This contrasts with deciduous plants, which lose their foliage completely during the winter or dry season. Consisting of many diffe ...

tree In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, e.g., including only woody plants with secondary growth, only ...

, in the family

Annonaceae The Annonaceae are a Family (biology), family of flowering plants consisting of trees, shrubs, or rarely lianas commonly known as the custard apple family or soursop family. With 108 accepted genera and about 2400 known species, it is the largest ...

that grows 20-25 metres tall. ''Xylopia quintasii'' can tolerate temperatures above at least 1°C. Its

leaves A leaf (: leaves) is a principal appendage of the stem of a vascular plant, usually borne laterally above ground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, stem, ...

are

oblanceolate The following terms are used to describe leaf morphology in the description and taxonomy of plants. Leaves may be simple (that is, the leaf blade or 'lamina' is undivided) or compound (that is, the leaf blade is divided into two or more leaflets) ...

and petiolate. ''Xylopia quintasii'' produces six star-shaped flowers. ''Xylopia quintasii'' is native to

West Africa West Africa, also known as Western Africa, is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations geoscheme for Africa#Western Africa, United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Gha ...

. It is known as Aghako in

Ghana Ghana, officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It is situated along the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, and shares borders with Côte d’Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, and Togo to t ...

and Mvomba in

Cameroon Cameroon, officially the Republic of Cameroon, is a country in Central Africa. It shares boundaries with Nigeria to the west and north, Chad to the northeast, the Central African Republic to the east, and Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and the R ...

Distribution

''Xylopia quintasii'' is found in most of North-Western Africa. ''Xylopia quintasii'' is commonly found in evergreen and deciduous forests and coastal thickets. This species is present in the following countries:

Uses

''Xylopia quintasii'' is not commonly sold on the international market and is usually only used for local purposes. It is sometimes used in

Grains of Selim Grains of Selim are the seeds of a shrubby tree, '' Xylopia aethiopica'', found in Africa. The seeds have a musky flavor and are used as a spice in a manner similar to black pepper, and as a flavouring agent that defines , the dominant style of ...

and is smoked. The wood of ''Xylopia quintasii'' is used for house building in posts, poles, and planks. It can also have other uses like bowls, plates, weapons, tools, toys, etc. Many parts of ''Xylopia quintasii'' are used in

traditional medicine Traditional medicine (also known as indigenous medicine or folk medicine) refers to the knowledge, skills, and practices rooted in the cultural beliefs of various societies, especially Indigenous groups, used for maintaining health and treatin ...

. The bark is used to treat illnesses like

bronchitis Bronchitis is inflammation of the bronchi (large and medium-sized airways) in the lungs that causes coughing. Bronchitis usually begins as an infection in the nose, ears, throat, or sinuses. The infection then makes its way down to the bronchi. ...

and

pneumonia Pneumonia is an Inflammation, inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as Pulmonary alveolus, alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of Cough#Classification, productive or dry cough, ches ...

. The inner bark is used to treat swellings. A lotion can be prepared from the bark to treat headaches.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q15367478 quintasii Taxa named by Adolf Engler Taxa named by Ludwig Diels