Some people
call it old man’s tale. Some call is wisdom. Others, indigenous knowledge. Unfortunately,
it is also something we are moving away from, disowning all that a few
generations before us knew about nature, plants, trees, their medicinal
properties and how to make the most of it. The irony – scientific data and
research has, for decades, only confirmed what our ancestors knew.
A case in
point: the African cherry tree, Prunus Africana, which is found in the Aberdere highlands of Kenya. Traditional
healers have known how the tree’s bark is good for a host of illnesses – from
stomach upsets and stomach aches to wounds, loss of appetite and so on. Now the
pharmaceutical industry has also confirmed that the bark extract can treat a
condition called prostatic hyperplasia, a swollen prostate, which can increase
a person’s risk to prostate cancer.
the National Forestry Resources Research Institute in
collaboration with the International Centre for Research in Agroforestry have
led to a deeper understanding of the benefits of the tree that grows in the
Kibale and Mt. Rwenzori National Parks in Uganda.
Experts say that there was a
time when the tree was distributed throughout Africa – from Ethiopia to South
Africa and from the West Coast to the island of Madagascar off the east coast.

Here’s a lesson for all of us then: respect what we have and learn to have a symbiotic relationship with what is good for us.
Like they say – would you pinch the hand
that feeds you?
SGI
plants trees to combat hunger, poverty and climate change.