Irvingia
Encyclopedia
- For Irvingia F.Muell., see its synonym PolysciasPolysciasPolyscias is a genus of flowering plant of family Araliaceae, comprising 114 species. They bear pinnate leaves....
.
Irvingia is a genus of Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
n and Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia, South-East Asia, South East Asia or Southeastern Asia is a subregion of Asia, consisting of the countries that are geographically south of China, east of India, west of New Guinea and north of Australia. The region lies on the intersection of geological plates, with heavy seismic...
n tree
Tree
A tree is a perennial woody plant. It is most often defined as a woody plant that has many secondary branches supported clear of the ground on a single main stem or trunk with clear apical dominance. A minimum height specification at maturity is cited by some authors, varying from 3 m to...
s in the family Irvingiaceae
Irvingiaceae
Irvingiaceae is a family of flowering plants, consisting of 20 species in 3 genera.The family is named for the Scottish naval surgeon, Edward George Irving....
, sometimes known by the common names wild mango, African mango, or bush mango. They bear edible mango
Mango
The mango is a fleshy stone fruit belonging to the genus Mangifera, consisting of numerous tropical fruiting trees in the flowering plant family Anacardiaceae. The mango is native to India from where it spread all over the world. It is also the most cultivated fruit of the tropical world. While...
-like fruits, and are especially valued for their fat
Fat
Fats consist of a wide group of compounds that are generally soluble in organic solvents and generally insoluble in water. Chemically, fats are triglycerides, triesters of glycerol and any of several fatty acids. Fats may be either solid or liquid at room temperature, depending on their structure...
- and protein
Protein
Proteins are biochemical compounds consisting of one or more polypeptides typically folded into a globular or fibrous form, facilitating a biological function. A polypeptide is a single linear polymer chain of amino acids bonded together by peptide bonds between the carboxyl and amino groups of...
-rich nuts.
The subtly aromatic nuts are typically dried in the sun for preservation, and are sold whole or in powder form. They may be ground to a paste known variously as dika bread or Gabon chocolate. Their high content of mucilage
Mucilage
Mucilage is a thick, gluey substance produced by most plants and some microorganisms. It is a polar glycoprotein and an exopolysaccharide.It occurs in various parts of nearly all classes of plant, usually in relatively small percentages, and is frequently associated with other substances, such as...
enables them to be used as thickening agent
Thickening agent
Thickening agents, or thickeners, is the term applied to substances which increase the viscosity of a solution or liquid/solid mixture without substantially modifying its other properties; although most frequently applied to foods where the target property is taste, the term also is applicable to...
s for dishes such as ogbono soup
Ogbono soup
Ogbono soup is a Nigerian dish made with ground ogbono seeds, with considerable local variation. Besides the seeds, water, and oil, it typically contains leaf vegetables, other vegetables, seasonings, and meat. Typical leaf vegetables include bitterleaf and celosia. Typical other vegetables...
. The nuts may also be pressed for vegetable oil.
The fruit is a large drupe
Drupe
In botany, a drupe is a fruit in which an outer fleshy part surrounds a shell of hardened endocarp with a seed inside. These fruits develop from a single carpel, and mostly from flowers with superior ovaries...
, with fibrous flesh.
The trees yield a hard wood
Wood
Wood is a hard, fibrous tissue found in many trees. It has been used for hundreds of thousands of years for both fuel and as a construction material. It is an organic material, a natural composite of cellulose fibers embedded in a matrix of lignin which resists compression...
, useful in construction.
The genus is named for Dr Edward George Irving
Edward George Irving
Dr Edward George Irving RN was a Scottish surgeon who served in the Royal Navy. He was also a collector of plants, and the plant family Irvingiaceae, and genus Irvingia are named for him.-Marriage and Family:...
, a Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
surgeon.
Species
- Irvingia gabonensis (Aubry-Lecomte ex O'Rorke) Baill.
- Irvingia malayana Oliv. ex A. W. Benn.