Albizia procera is a large, fast-growing tree found throughout Bangladesh and other parts of Asia. It produces wood used for construction and other purposes. The tree fixes nitrogen in the soil and provides nutritious fodder and shade. It is an important species for reforestation and agroforestry systems due to these benefits.

1. Albizia procera:
Agroforestry and
Reforestation
Botanical Features I Geographic Distribution I Uses
SUMMERY
Albizia procera is a large, fast-growing
tree that occurs on many different sites.
This species provides wood for a variety of
purposes, nutritious fodder for livestock
and shade for tea plantations. It is an
important reforestation and agroforestry
species. It is commonly called locally
White Siris, Sada Koroi etc.
Syed Zahid Hasan
Agroforest Botany
Dept. of Agroforestry and Environmental Science I Sylhet Agricultural University

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Albizia procera for Reforestation and Agroforestry
1. Botanical Features
1.1. Taxonomic of Albizia procera
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Plantae
Phylum: Spermatophyta
Subphylum: Angiospermae
Class: Dicotyledonae
Order: Fabales
Family: Fabaceae
Subfamily: Mimosoideae
Genus: Albizia
Species: Albizia procera
1.2. Identity of Albizia procera
Scientific name: Albizia procera (Roxb.)
Synonym: Mimosa procera Roxb.
English name: White siris, Safed sinis, Forest siris
Local name:
Tribal name:
1.3. Plant Ecology
• Tropical and subtropical moist and wet forest
• Rainfall is 1000-5000 mm/yr.
• Growing to elevations of 1200 meter
• Also common on moisture savannas and swamp forests.
• Temperatures vary from 1° -46° C
• Drought tolerant and susceptible to frost
2. Description of the plant
2.1. Stem:
• Stem and Height: Tall, clear, erect, unbuttressed bole, sometimes curved trunk and large
branches, thin and spreading, crown 95 cm in diameter and 36 meters in height.
• Bark: Nearly smooth, Whitish to light-greenish gray or Light-brown
• Natural forests are managed for timber production by coppicing on a 40-year rotation.
• Fuelwood plantations are managed on a 20-year rotation (Venkataramany 1968).
2.2. Bark: Mainly bark is usable part of Albizia procera.
Sada koroi Sil koroi Jhunjhuna koroi Loha siris (Sylhet) Jat koroi (Northern districts
Choi Ghepa (Mogh) Choipang Chobang Chapao (Marma)
Khelvi (Garo) Khuri bofang
(Tripura)
Sil koroi gaith
(Tanchangya)
Awaiya, Changgae
(Rakhaing)
Figure 1: A Albizia procera Tree
Figure 2: Tupical Albizia procera plant parts
Figure 3: Albizia procera Ecology

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2.3. Leaves:
• Bipinnately compound
• Reddish when juvenile
• Pinnae 2-6 pairs
• Leaflets 5-10 pairs
• Mature to a length of 12-25 cm
• Leaflets are 2-4 cm long and 8-16 mm wide
2.4. Flowering:
• June to September (beginning of the rainy season)
• Sessile
• Yellowish-white
• Racemes 8-25 cm long near the end of a twig
• Numerous greenish-yellow flowers form whitish heads 20-
24 mm in diameter
2.5. Fruit:
• Pods linear-oblong
• Flattened
• Shiny reddish-brown
• Reddish-brown flat pod
• 10-20 cm long and 18-25 cm wide
• Ripen 3-5 months after flowering
• Each pod containing 6-12 seeds
2.6. Plant parts used: Bark
3. Geographical Distribution
• Bangladesh: This species is found in forests of Chittagong, Chittagong Hill Tracts, Cox's Bazar,
Dhaka-Mymensingh Sal forests, and more or less throughout the country.
• Native: Australia, Bangladesh, Brunei, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia,
Myanmar, Nepal, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Taiwan, Province of China, Thailand, Vietnam
• Exotic: Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Cuba, Dominica, Dominican Republic,
Grenada, Guadeloupe, Haiti, Jamaica, Martinique, Netherlands Antilles, Panama, Puerto Rico, St
Kitts and Nevis, St Lucia, St Vincent and the Grenadines, Sudan, Tanzania, Trinidad and Tobago,
Virgin Islands (US), Zimbabwe.
Figure 8: The map above shows countries where
the species has been planted.
Figure 4: Bark of Albizia procera
Figure 6: Flower of Albizia procera
Figure 5: Leaves of Albizia procera
Figure 7: Fruit and Seed of Albizia procera

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4. Plant Type
• Broad leaved
• Perennial
• Seed propagated
• Tree
• Vegetatively propagated
• Woody
5. Soil Tolerances
Soil drainage
• Seasonally waterlogged
Soil reaction
• Acid
• Alkaline
• Neutral
Soil texture
• Light
• Medium
Special soil tolerances
• Saline
• Shallow
• Sodic
6. Multiplication
✓ Seed: There are 20,000-24,000 seeds per kilogram. Average germination rate of 63%.
✓ Vegetative propagation: Seedlings, saplings and mature trees coppice vigorously from stumps and roots.
✓ Tissue Culture
Figure 9: Seed Parts Figure 10: Tissue culture system

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7. Uses
7.1. Medicinal:
• Bark-boiled water with table salt is prescribed to expel
threadworms.
• Bath with the same water is given for scabies.
• An extract is made with the barks of the plant by boiling in water
is used to wash the anus thrice a day until the anal fissure is
cured.
• A paste is made with bark of the plant is applied on the infected
skin twice a day until the leprosy is cured.
7.2. Agroforestry:
• Likely to affect nutrient cycling as the species is a nitrogen
fixer.
• Natural regeneration provides small timber, fuelwood, charcoal,
fodder or shade.
• Seedlings are planted in family forests or home gardens.
• Albizia procera can be cultivated as shade for tea plantation.
• It is protein-rich fodder.
7.3. Wood:
• Durable, strong and resistant to termites
• The wood is light- to chocolate-brown with light and dark
bands.
• It is difficult to saw due to interlocking grain and has a specific
gravity of 0.6-0.9.
• Considered a promising source of pulp for high-quality paper.
7.3.1. Wood Products are -
❖ Containers
• Boxes
• Cases
• Cooperage
• Crates
• Pallets
• Tanks
• Vats
❖ Pulp
• Short-fibre pulp
❖ Sawn or hewn building timbers
• For heavy construction
❖ Roundwood
• Building poles
• Pit props
• Posts
• Transmission poles
❖ Woodware
• Industrial and domestic woodware
• Wood carvings
Figure 11: Medicinal
products of Albizia procera
Figure 12: Albizia procera in
Tea Garden
Figure 13: Albizia procera Wood
❖ Charcoal
❖ Furniture
❖ Vehicle bodies
❖ Veneers

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7.4. Other Uses:
• Trees are often planted for shade or beautification along roads.
• The bark contains tannins and a reddish gum.
• Also, it can be used to make a poison.
• The leaves are used to treat ulcers and have insecticidal properties.
• In many countries, the cooked leaves are eaten as a vegetable (Hensleigh and Holaway 1988).
8. Symbiosis
Albizia procera forms symbiotic association with Rhizobium bacteria enabling it to fix nitrogen and
thrive on infertile soils. The application of phosphorus fertilizer can improve nodulation and nitrogen
fixation, particularly on infertile soils.
9. Limitations
Because of its aggressive growth white siris may be a potential weed. This is particularly true in the
many countries, where white siris (Sada Koroi) grows faster than many native species.
10. Natural Enemies
10.1. Diseases:
• Seedling wilt caused by Fusarium oxysporum
• Leaf spot caused by Colletotrichum dematium and Cercospora albiziae
• Pustules to form on leaflets caused by Ravenelia clemensiae
• Bark and stem cankers caused by Fusarium solani
• Root rot caused by Ganoderma lucidum
• Heart rot caused by Ganoderma applanatum and Polyporus gilvus
10.2. Insect:
• Seed weevils such as Bruchidius bilineatopygus
• Root knot nematodes such as Meloidogyne spp.
• Hemipterous insect Oxyrhachis tarandus
• Termite such as Coptotermes curvignathus and Ancistrotermes amphidon
• Stem borer such as –
Ascotis selenaria Hyposidra successaria
Eurema blanda Rhesala imparata
Eurema hecaba Rhesala inconcinnalis
Cusiala raptaria Rhesala moestalis

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11. References
Benthall, A.P. 1933. The trees of Calcutta and its neighborhood. Thacker Spink and Co., Calcutta, India. 513 p.
Bor, N.L. 1953. Manual of Indian forest botany. Oxford University Press, London, UK. 441 p.
Brandis, D. 1906. Indian trees. Bishen Singh Mahendra Pal Singh, Dehra Dun, India.
Djogo, A.P.Y. 1992. The possibilities of using local drought-resistant multipupose tree species as alternatives to
lamtoro (Leucaena leucocephala) for agroforestry and social forestry in West Timor. Working Paper No.
32. EAPI, East West Center, Honolulu, Hawaii, USA. 41 p.
Ghosh, R.C. 1976. Afforestation problems of saline and alkaline soils in India. Van Vigyan 14(1): 1-17.
Hensleigh, T.E. and B.K. Holaway. 1988. Agroforestry species for the Philippines. Washington DC: US Peace
Corps, 404 p.
ICFRE, 1995. (Albizia procera (Safed Siris)). In: Extension Series, Dehra Dun, India: Indian Council of Forestry
Research and Education (ICFRE).
Little, E.L., F.H. Wadsworth. 1964. Common trees of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. Agric. Handbook 249.
US Department of Agriculture, Washington DC. 548 p.
Nielsen, I. 1979. Notes on the genus Albizia Durazz. (Leguminosae-Mimosaceace) in mainland S.E. Asia.
Adansonia 19(2): 199-229.
Parrotta, J.A. 1987. Albizia procera (Roxb.)Benth. Silvics of Forest Trees of the American Tropics. Rio Piedras,
Puerto Rico USA: USDA Forest Service, International Institute of Tropical Forestry. 4 p.
Roshetko, J.M. 1997. Seed treatment for Albizia species. In: N.Q. Zabala (ed.) Albizia & Paraserianthesis.
Proceedings of an international workshop. Morrilton, Arkansas, USA: Winrock International, in press.
Troup, R.S. 1921. The silviculture of Indian trees. Clarendon Press, Oxford, UK. 1195 p.
Venkataramany, P. 1968. Silvicuture of genus Albizia and species. Silviculture of Indian trees., No. 22.
Government of India, Delhi, India. 54 p.
World Agroforestry Centre, 2002. Agroforestree Database., Nairobi, Kenya:
ICRAF. http://www.worldagroforestrycentre.org/Sites/TreeDBS/AFT/AFT.htm
Written by John A. Parrotta¹ and James M. Roshetko². ¹Research Forester, USDA Forest Service, International
Institute of Tropical Forestry, Rio Piedras, PR 00928-4984, USA and ²Program Officer, Winrock
International.