Gum arabic tree
Senegalia senegal
A thorny nitrogen-fixer that shades millet fields and bleeds gum arabic when its bark is cut in the dry season; a backbone tree of the Great Green Wall.
Hardiness: zones 10 to 12
Light: full sun
Size: about 20 ft tall, 20 ft wide
Harvest: December to May
From: The Sahel, from Senegal to Sudan
Drought-hardy once established
Here: Too tender to overwinter outdoors on the Lake Erie shore (zone 6b to 7a): grow it in a pot and bring it in, or treat it as an annual.
Good for: fixing nitrogen in the soil, pollinators, wildlife, screens and hedges.
Native to: African savannas & tropics, Sahara & Arabian deserts. Hardy in zones 10 to 12.
The story
The gum arabic tree grows across the Sahel, and its gum has been traded north across the Sahara since ancient Egypt. Farmers leave it standing in millet fields because it feeds the soil, and it is one of the main trees planted in the Great Green Wall, the belt of restored land crossing Africa from Senegal to Djibouti.
Planting
Full sun in sandy, well-drained soil; it is made for long dry seasons. Sow soaked seed or plant seedlings at the first rains, in a pit that catches run-off.
Growing
Protect young trees from goats for the first years. It needs no watering once established and drops its leaves in the dry season.
Harvest and use
In the dry season a shallow cut in the bark of a tree five years or older bleeds gum that hardens into amber tears, collected a few weeks later.
What to watch for
Sharp hooked thorns. It will not stand frost or waterlogged ground.
See if Gum arabic tree fits your yard
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More helper plants for soil, wildlife and biomass
General guidance, not professional advice. Conditions vary by yard and year; for local specifics ask your county extension office. Never eat a wild plant you cannot identify with certainty. Traditional uses are shared as history, not medical advice. © 2026 Sean Priest · Irie Orchard. Terms & credits · Privacy · Home