Agroforestree Database

Local names:
 Afrikaans (outeniekwageelhout), Amharic (zigba), English (smooth-barked yellow wood,podo,oteninqua yellow wood,East African yellow wood), Trade name (podo), Zulu (umSonti)

Podocarpus falcatus is an evergreen tree up to 46 m in nature but quite smaller if planted, with a long clean and cylindrical trunk. The crown is slender with a light branching system or sub-opposite or verticellate spreading limbs or small, with crowded branches. The bark is thin, rather smooth and greyish-brown to dark brown in colour. It later exfoliates into rectangular to irregular flakes up to 3 cm long. The blaze is pink in colour. 

Leaves vary in disposition sometimes being spirally arranged, but at others in two opposite or sub-opposite ranks. They are shortly petiolate and linear to linear-lanceolate, narrowing abruptly to a sharp or blunt apex and basally to a slightly twisted short stalk. The adult leaf is 3-5 x 0.3-0.5 cm, the midrib of the adult leaf is not prominent above but is well marked beneath. The leaf colour is dark green, often with a greyish bloom. 

The 1-3 male cones (male strobili) are axillary. Each is slender and catkin-like, 4-26 x 7-15 mm. The colour is yellow to pinkish-purple. The female strobili are solitary, hard, ovoid to 2 cm, very slow to develop, green with dull purple bloom, outer shell thin but inner flesh eaten by monkeys and birds. Usually one seed is produced, at the end of a woody stalk slightly expanded at the apex.

Fruit fleshy and spherical, up to 17 mm in diameter. Mature seeds of P. falcatus are large, fleshy, about 1.5-3.5 cm in diameter, almost spherical or subglobose and drupe-like, surmounting a terete pedicel. The testa is very hard, 1-8 mm thick, crustaceous, tubercled and enclosed in a very resinous green to yellowish green somewhat fleshy integument.

The genus name is derived from ‘podos’, a Greek word for foot and ‘karpos’ meaning fruit, in reference to the swollen seed stalk. Falcatus means sickle-shaped, referring to the shape of the leaves.

Ecology

Designations of vegetation within which P. falcatus is found include coastal swamp forest, transitional rainforest, dry evergreen forest, undifferential forest, and Afromontane rainforest. Occasionally in Afromontane rain forest, but particularly characteristic of undifferentiated Afromontane forest, where it is frequently one of the dominant species (‘Podocarpus forest’) or one of the co-dominant species (e.g. in ‘Juniperus-Podocarpus forest’), often persisting in relic forest patches (gully forests, church forests). Frequent as a single tree left in derived grassland or farmland in areas with sufficient rainfall. It seems sometimes to be cultivated, and it can sometimes be difficult to distinguish between records of cultivation and records of marginal natural distribution. 
A humid and warm climate is preferable; in dry and hot areas plantations fail. The East African yellow wood can tolerate moderate frost but not drought.

Native range
Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Rwanda, South Africa, Sudan, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Zimbabwe

Tree management

When transplanting the seedling into the open ground, care must be taken not to damage the taproot, as it will result in a long period, sometimes up to a year, during which the tree will show no growth. 
A fast growing species with a mean annual increment of up to 1 m/year for 15 years; the growth rate is higher under natural conditions in higher rainfall areas and very fast under garden conditions. Like many other conifer species, it is self-pruning. However branching associated with wide spacing necessitates pruning operations to maintain the quality of the timber. Lack of, or delay in, thinning has a negative effect on growth.
The tree can be successfully planted in a plantation format. East African yellow wood trees 17-18 years old show the wood to be of excellent quality, with an increase in cubic metres when cut 2 years later, at 20 years of age. On good sites trees should be large enough for harvesting 40-50 years after planting. The protection of plantations against fire attack is necessary since the bark does not provide adequate protection for the cambium.

Seed storage is intermediate; viability lost within 3 months in hermetic storage at room temperature with 13 ± 2% mc. Viability is reduced after 12 months storage. Seed should be dried to 15% mc before storage, properly dried seeds can be maintained in hermetic storage at 3 deg. C for at least 2.5 years. Seeds can be dried down to at least 6% mc; optimum air-dry storage environments appear to have 6-8% mc and 4-10 deg. C, sub-zero temperatures of -5 deg. C and -20 deg. C. are damaging. Viability can be maintained for 1-2 years in hermetic air-dry storage at cool temperatures. There are about 500-1 100 seeds/kg.

Designations of vegetation within which P. falcatus is found include coastal swamp forest, transitional rainforest, dry evergreen forest, undifferential forest, and Afromontane rainforest. Occasionally in Afromontane rain forest, but particularly characteristic of undifferentiated Afromontane forest, where it is frequently one of the dominant species (‘Podocarpus forest’) or one of the co-dominant species (e.g. in ‘Juniperus-Podocarpus forest’), often persisting in relic forest patches (gully forests, church forests). Frequent as a single tree left in derived grassland or farmland in areas with sufficient rainfall. It seems sometimes to be cultivated, and it can sometimes be difficult to distinguish between records of cultivation and records of marginal natural distribution. 
A humid and warm climate is preferable; in dry and hot areas plantations fail. The East African yellow wood can tolerate moderate frost but not drought.

The geographical origin of the seed is an important point to remember when harvesting seed. For example, in South Africa, seed collected from trees growing in the Western Cape and sown in the Northern province will not be as ecologically well-adapted as seed collected from trees of the same species growing on the Soutpansberg. Fresh cones (they look like large berries) are collected from the tree or from the ground beneath the trees. It is important to remove the fleshy part of the fruit as it contains an inhibitor that suppresses germination. 
Sow seeds directly into black nursery bags filled with a mixture of sand and compost (1:1). Care must be taken to keep the mixture moist at all times. Ideally seed germinate in 50-90 days at an average rate of 30%. Germination is usually erratic and sometimes takes up to 6 months. A viable pre-treatment method would be to soak seeds in saturated salt water for 48 hours before sowing which results in the rate of germination rising from 20% to 50%. Seed coat removal combined with stratification, which consists of putting seeds with the exocarp intact between two layers of decomposing material for 3-5 days, is also suitable. This action is followed by the removal of the seed coat and sowing in the nursery. The total removal of the exocarp is recommended as the best pre-treatment method.
It has also been found that the site at which the cuttings are taken will influence the growth habit of the cutting. Cuttings taken from lateral branches and shoots produce plants with a lateral growth habit rather than an upright one.

Poison:  Leaves contain podolide, is a main ingredient for insecticide. 

For use in re-forestation it is a species needing special treatment to ensure satisfactory seed germination but maintains good form in a range of planting situations.

  The ripe fruit is edible but very resinous.

P. falcatus is a suitable source of firewood.

Timber:  It furnishes an excellent timber of an attractive yellow to yellowish brown colour throughout with normally no clear distinction between sapwood and heartwood. The wood is normally straight-grained very fine, featureless and non-resinous. Soft and moderately hard and of medium density, though needs preservatives and careful seasoning to prevent warping. The timber of this species is a standard building timber and is extensively used for floors and roofing though not suitable for external joinery and doorframes. The light wood of high quality is widely used for furniture, panelling, shelving, drawer linings, shop counters and light duty impregnated railway sleepers. Being free of odour and taste, it is the wood most used locally for butter and cheese boxes and other food containers. 

Shade or shelter:  The crown makes P. falcatus a suitable shade species. In the higher rainfall areas it can be planted as a windbreak around homesteads and crops. 

Tannin or dyestuff:  The bark contains 3-6% tannin and is used for tanning leather.

Medicine:  Oil extracted from the seeds or fruits are used to treat gonorrhoea. The sap is used as a remedy for chest complaints.

Ornamental:  The tree is very suitable for planting along roads in cities because of its excellent and attractive form. It makes an pleasant specimen plant on a lawn, standing out in early spring with the new flush of bluish grey leaves contrasting with the dark green mature leaves. Excellent as a pot plant for the patio. These plants can be used as Christmas trees instead of pine or fir trees. 

Other services:  The large, dense crown is a favourite roosting and nesting site for various bird species.