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Biology
The common name of Cordeauxia edulis is Yeheb nut. It is an evergreen, multistemmed shrub. It grows up to 4 m. It has a taproot system, which can go 3m deep. The leaves are pinnate, leathery and oval. The flowers are yellow and contains both sexes. The pods includes 1 - 4 round or ovoid seeds, they are by mistake called nuts.

Distribution
Yeheb is native in the arid and semi-arid areas in Somalia and Ethiopia. It is exotic in Israel, Kenya, Sudan, Tanzania and in the Republic of Yemen.

Environmental requirements
Cordeauxia edulis is a drought resistant plant. For optimal plant development, average temperature and rainfall requiements are 25°C and 250 - 400mm/year. Yeheb can cope with minimal precipitation levels of 150 - 200mm/year. Yeheb grows on soils, which have a low nitrogen content.

Sowing
The seeds should be sown on soils where the taproot can develop. The seeds remain only viable for a few months, so it must be sown fresh. It grows slowly in the early stages most likely because of the small proportion in reserve proteins.

Yield
Yeheb produces few fruits in the first three years, but it can live many years. The shrubs are pollinated by insects. There is the possibility of a yield of 5kg seeds. One seed has a weight of 2 - 3g.

Use

 * Food: Seeds are dried, boiled, roasted or eaten raw.
 * Drinks: Tea is made of the leaves.
 * Fodder: The shrub is evergreen and thus a good fodder in dry seasons. It is eaten by camels and goats. But the shrubs cannot withstand long-term grazing pressure. in the rainy season it is avoided because of the high content of tannins.
 * Fuel: The wood is good firewood, also when wet.
 * Poison: Roasting or boiling of freshly picked seeds provide a good insect defeence.
 * Industry: The red dye in the leaves can be used for dyeing textiles.

Nutritional Aspects
The seeds are rich in sugar and fats. The seeds cotains 37% of starch, 24% of sugar, 13% of protein and 11% of fat.