Schinziophyton rautanenii

Classification System: APG IV

Superregnum: Eukaryota
Regnum: Plantae
Cladus: Angiosperms
Cladus: Eudicots
Cladus: Core eudicots
Cladus: Rosids
Cladus: Eurosids I
Ordo: Malpighiales

Familia: Euphorbiaceae
Subfamilia: Crotonoideae
Tribus: Ricinodendreae
Genus: Schinziophyton
Species: Schinziophyton rautanenii
Name

Schinziophyton rautanenii (Schinz) Radcl.-Sm., 1990
Synonyms

Basionym
Ricinodendron rautanenii Schinz, Bull. Herb. Boissier 6: 744 (1898).
Heterotypic
Vitex lukafuensis De Wild., Ann. Mus. Congo Belge, Bot., sér. 4, 1: 121 (1903).
Ricinodendron viticoides Mildbr., Notizbl. Bot. Gart. Berlin-Dahlem 12: 517 (1935).

Distribution
Native distribution areas:

Continental: Africa
Angola; Botswana; Caprivi Strip; Malawi; Mozambique; Namibia; Tanzania; Zambia; Zare; Zimbabwe

References: Brummitt, R.K. 2001. TDWG – World Geographical Scheme for Recording Plant Distributions, 2nd Edition
References
Primary references

Radcliffe-Smith, A., 1990. Kew Bulletin. Kew, England 45:157.

Links

Govaerts, R. et al. 2020. Schinziophyton rautanenii in World Checklist of Selected Plant Families. The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published online. Accessed: 2020 Jun 19. Reference page.
International Plant Names Index. 2020. Schinziophyton rautanenii. Published online. Accessed: Jun 19 2020.
Govaerts, R. et al. 2020. Schinziophyton rautanenii in Kew Science Plants of the World online. The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published online. Accessed: 2020 Jun 19. Reference page.
Tropicos.org 2020. Schinziophyton rautanenii. Missouri Botanical Garden. Published online. Accessed: 19 Jun 2020.
USDA, ARS, Germplasm Resources Information Network. Schinziophyton rautanenii in the Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN), U.S. Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service. Accessed: 07-Oct-06.

Vernacular names
suomi: Manketti

The mongongo tree, mongongo nut or manketti tree (Schinziophyton rautanenii) is a member of the family Euphorbiaceae and of the monotypic genus Schinziophyton. A large, spreading tree, the mongongo reaches 15–20 metres tall. It is found on wooded hills and among sand dunes, and is associated with the Kalahari sand soil-types. The leaves are a distinctive hand-shape, and the pale yellow wood is similar in characteristics to balsa, being both lightweight and strong. The yellowish flowers occur in slender, loose sprays.

Fruit

The fruit are known as mongongo fruit, mongongo nuts, manketti nuts or nongongo. The egg-shaped, velvety fruit ripen and fall between March and May each year, and contain a thin layer of edible flesh around a thick, hard, pitted shell. Inside this shell is a highly nutritious nut.
Distribution

The mongongo is distributed widely through subtropical southern Africa. There are several distinct belts of distribution, the largest of which reaches from northern Namibia into northern Botswana, south-western Zambia and western Zimbabwe. Another belt is found in eastern Malawi, and yet another in eastern Mozambique.

It is also found in Angola, Tanzania and Zaire.[1]
Traditional uses

Mongongo nuts are a staple diet in some areas, most notably among the San people of northern Botswana and Namibia. Archaeological evidence has shown that they have been consumed by the San communities for centuries.[2] Their popularity stems in part from their flavor, and in part from the fact that they store well, and remain edible for much of the year.

Dry fruits are first steamed to soften the skins. After peeling, the fruits are then cooked in water until the maroon-colored flesh separates from the hard inner nuts. The pulp is eaten, and the nuts are saved to be roasted later. Alternatively, nuts are collected from elephant dung; the hard nuts survive intact through the digestive process after the elephant has consumed and digested them.[2] Once dry, the outer shell cracks easily, revealing the nut, encased within a soft, inner shell. The nuts are either eaten intact, or pounded as ingredients in other dishes.

The oil from the nuts has also been traditionally used as a body rub in the dry winter months to clean and moisten the skin. The wood, being both strong and light, makes excellent fishing floats, toys, insulating material and drawing boards.
Nutrition

Per 100 grams shelled nuts:

24 g protein

57 g fat:

44% polyunsaturated fatty acids
18% monounsaturated fatty acids
17% saturated fatty acids

193 mg calcium

527 mg magnesium

4 mg zinc

2.8 mg copper

565 mg vitamin E (tocopherol)

Economic aspects

Richard Borshay Lee, writes

A diet based on mongongo nuts is in fact more reliable than one based on cultivated foods, and it is not surprising, therefore, that when a Bushman was asked why he hadn't taken to agriculture he replied: "Why should we plant, when there are so many mongongo nuts in the world?" [3]