African fan palm
Family Palmae (or Arecaceae)
Borassus aethiopicum (= Borassus flabellifer var. aethiopicum), the African fan palm (B. aethiopicum 1), is a dioecious palm, up to 25 m tall, with large palmate leaves, up to 4 m long (B. aethiopicum 2), occurring in the savannas of tropical Africa.
Use
The African fan palm provides good timber that is saline resistant. The leaves are used for thatching, fences, mats etc. Fibres from the leaf sheaths are used for ropes and in brushmaking (B. aethiopicum 4). The inflorescences are tapped for the sweet sap, which on fermentation makes toddy or palm wine. The pulp from the fruit (B. aethiopicum 3) is used as food among Nilotic people.